Six Kinds of Trainers
by Jammy05
Summary: Three trainers, Gold, Silver, and Crystal, are about to begin there journey. There are three other trainers as well, and they may need their help in order to stop the infamous Team Rocket. There are other surprises waiting for them in the Johto region.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Introduction (Like Always)**

Pokémon are everywhere. They walk on the ground, swim in water, and some can fly in the air. Pokémon live in many places such as tall grass, trees, mountains, caves, under water, even in urban towns. They are usually wild, but can be domesticated into pets. Humans play with Pokémon while others train them and become Pokémon Trainers. Okay, okay! Most of us heard this introduction before, over and over again. So let's skip everything and head towards the story already.

The story takes place in the Johto region, in a small town called New Bark. In the town there is a lab that studies Pokémon and the research center for a professor named Elm. Professor Elm is getting three Pokémon ready for the new Pokémon trainers. Where are they at the moment? Well….they're asleep. Apparently, Elm hasn't gotten everything fully prepared for the trainer's journey for a specific reason. Meanwhile in small, immaculate, two-story house, a mother is in the kitchen cooking breakfast, the goes to the stairs and looks up.

"Gold! Breakfast is ready." She shouts out, "Get up, already!"

In one of the rooms, there is television, a radio, and a computer next to each other. On the wall is a map of the Johto region next to the computer is a big Snorlax doll. Moving south of the map is a magna plant and to right of the plant is a table with a Pikachu doll and a Surfing Pikachu doll on top. There is a Poke Gear next to the Pikachu Doll. The floor is covered with a red carpet. (Explaining the backgrounds is hard) At the left of the room is a dresser next to a feathery bed with someone in it.

"Gold! Get up, now!" the mother shouts up again.

Gold sighs and gets out of bed. He goes to the dresser and grabs some clothes.

"GOLD!"

"I'm up! You can stop shouting!" Gold sighs again. "Though I don't know what the point is if I am not going on journey."

In another house, the mother is setting the table as a girl is franticly running back and forth. A boy comes entering in his pajamas yawning and rubbing his eyes.

"Good morning, Silver." The mother said, cheerfully.

Silver sits done at the table. "Morning." Silver starts to look at his sister running around. "Violet, you really need to calm down."

Violet glares at him angrily. "Shut up. There is no excuse for being late especially since I'm a delivery girl."

Silver looks at her in disbelief. "Your delivery service doesn't start until 9 o'clock." Silver pulls out his Poke Gear and looks at it. "It's not even 8:30."

"But I can't blow this one." Violet said nervously. "Professor Elm wants me to do an errand for him, so I can't mess up now."

"Well if you keep being uptight like that then you are going to mess up." Silver's mother said. "Just relax and focus on your job."

"O-okay." Violet takes a deep breath. "The faster I get this done, the faster you can start your journey."

Silver smiles, "Great, then I should get prepared. I'm going to meet Gold at the lake, anyway."

Silver gets up and runs off to his room. Violet grabs her vest and runs off to her hat and bag. The mother stands for a while and then speaks up.

"Will you both sit down and at least eat something." She said.

Going to another home, a girl lays on her polka dot bed looking through a Pokémon magazine. Her room is filled with cute Pokémon dolls as well as a big Lapras doll. There are three posters covering the walls. One was a Jigglypuff, one was a Clefairy, and the last one was a Pikachu. Her floor was covered with a green carpet. The girl gets up and goes downstairs to breakfast. The girl's parents where already at the table when she got there. The mother was placing some food on the table and the father reading the paper.

"Good morning, Crystal." The mother said seeing her daughter enter. "Are looking at that magazine again."

"I can't help it." Crystal said as she places the magazine on the table. "There are so many cute and beautiful Pokémon that I can't wait until I wait to start my journey."

"Well, you're not going anywhere until the professor finishes preparations are complete." says Crystal's father.

"Whenever that will be." Crystal sighs.

Gold, Silver, and Crystal are the new Pokémon trainers to go on the Johto Pokémon League. Well, until Silver's sister, Violet, finishes the errand. Violet heads towards the research lab as fast as she could.

Violet gasps for air. "*huff* *huff* I should have saved up my money for *huff* a bicycle."

Violet walks into the lab, nervously. She looks around the area seeing a bunch of books, computers, and machines. A scientist walks out from a room, notices Violet right away, and starts observing.

"Ummm… Can I help you?" Violet asked as an awkward feeling is in the air.

"Sorry. I like to keep track of the people that enter the lab, in case of emergencies." the scientist said.

"Emergencies?" Violet asked.

"If someone gets hurt or if they steal something, I have to report in the best detail I can explain." the scientist said.

"Oh, that sounds reasonable." Violet responds calmly. "Creepy, but reasonable.

The scientist takes a good look at Violet. Violet had white hair and green eyes. She was wearing a white shirt, a brown vest, a brown skirt, a brown beret, and brown shoes.

"Are you supposed to be wearing a uniform?" the scientist asked.

Violet felt a bit offensive. "Y-yes."

"How original. You must be the delivery girl that Elm asked for." said the scientist.

Violet perks up, "Y-yeah, that's me."

"Well then, follow me. Professor Elm is expecting you." the scientist leads Violet to another room.

Professor Elm was working at one of the computers, checking his research. There are three pokéballs on the table and a few Pokédexes. It seems that everything was ready for the Pokémon trainers. The scientist goes up to Professor Elm with Violet behind him.

"Excuse me, Professor Elm," the scientist interrupts Elm's research, "the delivery girl you wanted came."

Elm looks up from his computer. "Huh? Oh, you must be Violet. Sorry for not greeting you at the door."

"That's okay, the aide guided me in." Violet said. "Just tell me what to delivery and I will be off."

"Well, you see, I'm not delivering anything." Elm said sadly as Violet looks at him oddly. "A man named Mr. Pokémon has something for me to study."

Violet looks at Professor Elm oddly. "His name is Mr. Pokémon?"

"He got the nickname when he kept finding a bunch of weird stuff that has to do with Pokémon." Elm explained. "Now he has found something that he said will knock my socks off! But, if I go then I would have to delay the trainer's journey debut. There is also so much research to do and there are only two of us in the lab. So my question is, if I were to give you a Pokémon would you go to Mr. Pokémon's house and take the item back here?"

"Sure, but..." Violet thinks for a minute, "Are you not saving those Pokémon for the trainers?"

"Oh, yes! I was talking about this Pokémon." Elm said picking up a pokéball.

Professor shows the pokéball for a moment, then the pokéball opened up as a white light comes out. The white light morphed into a Pokémon, revealing a Chikorita.

"Chika! Chika!" The Chikorita said.

"Is that a Chikorita?" Violet kneels down to look at the Chikorita.

"This Chikorita was not chosen by the previous trainers." Elm explained. "The third trainer moved to a different region and started his journey there. This Chikorita desperately wants an owner."

"Wait! If I complete the job, I can have this Chikorita?" Violet seemed surprised.

"Sure, it seems to be a perfect reward especially since you're going to be the one training it on the way to Mr. Pokémon's house." Elm said.

"Wow!" Violet was happy. _And I didn't have to become a Pokémon trainer. _"Okay, I give it a try."

"Good, then let's get you on your way." Professor Elm looks at Chikorita. "Would you like to give her a name?"

"Sure, I… wait! How'd you know Chikorita is a girl?" Violet asked.

"The computers can identify whether if a Pokémon is a male or a female." Elm explains, "If we looked at it manually, we wouldn't be able to put the Pokémon back into the ball."

"Riiiight." Violet said. "Well, anyway, what kind of nickname should I give you?"

Violet thinks for a while and looks down at the Chikorita. Looking at the leaf on her head, an idea pops up in Violet's head.

"How about Aroma? That leaf on your head is an obvious sign that you're a grass type." Violet said.

Chikorita squeals. "Chika!"

"Okay, Aroma return." Aroma turned red and was warped back into the pokéball. "Now here is the location to Mr. Pokémon's house."

The scientist goes up to Violet with a potion bottle. "Here is some potion in case your Pokémon gets hurt along the way."

"Thank you." Violet said. "I'll get going right away."

Violet grabs the potion and the address to Mr. Pokémon's house, and runs out of the lab. She heads to the path to Route 29. Violet starts checking everything before she goes.

"Okay, got the address, got the potion, my uniform, my PokéGear, what am I missing?"

A spark goes through Violet's head and she immediately runs all the way back to the lab where Professor Elm was waiting for her.

"Here's Aroma." Professor Elm holds out Aroma's pokéball to Violet.

Violet takes the pokéball, embarrassed. "Sorry."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Starting Off**

Gold, Silver, and Crystal were at the lake throwing stones into the water, possibly bored out of their living skulls. Crystal was sitting on a rock while looking through Pokémon pictures, trying to see what kind of Pokémon she will try to capture. Gold and Silver were skipping stones in a lake down Route 27, trying to see whose rock goes the farthest.

"So what kind of Pokémon will you get?" Crystal asked.

"I don't know." Gold responses as he throws another stone. "I'm hoping to get the starter fire Pokémon when I start."

Silver smiles. "Good. I was hoping to get the starter water Pokémon."

Gold sighs. "Great, it's already bad enough that we are going to become rivals. You're already getting the upper hand."

"That means that I get the starter grass Pokémon. I hope it's cute." Crystal said happily.

Gold looks out to the lake. "I hope everything will go okay on our journey."

A Magikarp jumps out of the water gracefully into the air. Suddenly, a Pidgeotto swoops from the air and snatches the Magikarp away. The three stood there for a while with sweat drops.

"Well, hopefully our Pokémon won't end up like that." Crystal said nervously.

"I won't have to worry too much about that, due to my ultimate goal." Silver said.

"And that would be…?" Gold asked.

Silver speaks proudly. "I am going to go up against the Pokémon League with only two Pokémon."

Gold looks at him in disbelief. "Two Pokémon?"

"Don't you think it's a little early to be making goals?" Crystal asked. "We haven't even started our journey."

"Hey, every trainer should have a goal." Silver exclaimed as he sits down on another rock, "And this one will surely keep me going for a long time."

Gold rolls his eyes and smiles. "Well, good luck with that. I'm going to try and win the Pokémon League."

"Yeah, that's a typical goal for typical trainer." Silver said.

"Like yours isn't?" Gold points at Silver.

"Typical, yes, but with a twist." Silver points out.

"Yeah, the "two Pokémon" part. I get it." Gold said as he throws another rock into the water. "Oh well, at least it will make our rivalry much more interesting."

Crystal puts the pictures away and gets up. "So, when can we start our journey?"

"My sister is doing an errand for Professor Elm, which I heard is the reason why our initiation for our journey hasn't begun yet." Silver explained.

"An errand for Professor Elm? How important is this errand." Gold asked.

"Violet has to go out of town to get the errand done." Silver said.

"So that's why they had to postpone the initiation." Crystal giggled, "You think she'll be okay?"

"Don't worry." Silver said confidently. "If Violet really is devoted to her job, then she won't mess this up."

"Then our journey will start soon?" Crystal asked excited.

"We will be able to start tomorrow." Silver claimed.

Crystal starts to squeal as Gold looks at her direction.

"Thank goodness you were the one that did the squealing." Gold said, "Do you know how many men squeal like little girls?"

"Don't you even start." Silver said. "God, I hate bad cartoons."

"I don't know about you boys but I'm going to go prepare for tomorrow." Crystal immediately runs off, "See you tomorrow."

Silver looks at Gold. "Well, tomorrow you and I are rivals."

"That doesn't mean we can't be friends, still." Gold said.

"True. Well then, see you tomorrow."

Silver and Gold shake hands, and then Silver runs off as Gold makes his way home. Half way there, Gold decides to take a look at Professor Elm's lab. Looking at the lab, Gold starts to think about what kind of Pokémon he will meet and what he Pokémon he will capture. His thoughts stop as he sees a shady figure with long red hair near the lab. Gold becomes curious and walks right up to the person.

"So… this is Professor Elm's lab…" the shady character said, "I can make better use of those Pokémon then those two buffoons."

Gold speaks up to him. "Excuse me, what are you doing here?"

The person turns around and snaps back. "What are you looking at? Out of my way!

The character shoves Gold to the ground and runs off. Gold gets up, dusts himself, and looks at the direction the person went.

"Sheesh, what was his problem?!"

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Violet was walking down the path of Route 30, looking for Mr. Pokemon's house. It was already dark and the Spinaraks were coming out into the grass. Violet shivers at the sight of them and continues to walk on. Aroma, Violet's new Chikorita, yawns feeling very drowsy. Violet stops to observe her surroundings, then looks down at Aroma.

"Sorry Aroma," Violet said, "but we have to get to Mr. Pokemon's house, so we can't stop and rest. Then again, we did spend most of the day traveling through the woods at Route 29…and wondering through Cherrygrove City looking for a way to Route 30."

A Hoothoot can be heard in the distance, a Spinarak passes by creeping out Violet, and the wind starts to blow making a rustling sound in the grass. Violet shutters even more.

"We should keep going since we already walked a good amount of distance." Violet nervously said. "We should be at Mr. Pokemon's house. We just need to get to a path, a path that would be different. Maybe a sign would have said something of it. I could be going somewhere else or wound up in circles. The map the man gave said something of it so I should be good."

Aroma looks up her master strangely unable to understand a single word that was coming out of Violet's mouth. Violet appeared to be frustrated and a little scared as she continues to make sense of what she's doing wrong and what to do next, which, apparently, seems to be nothing but gibberish. Violet gets upset and gives up.

"Oooooooh, I can't figure this out!" Violet cries out. "I should have stayed at the Pokémon Center at Cherrygrove City."

Violet starts to run, with Aroma running after her.

"It has to around here." Violet looks back at Aroma. "The house has to be around here."

Violet looks in front of her just in time to hit her face into a berry tree. Aroma catches up with her master and looks up at her. Violet falls backgrounds on to the ground. A few berries fall off the tree, a couple hitting Violet. Violet gets up and rubs her face while Aroma loses all attention to Violet and helps herself to some berries. Violet opens her eyes to see a small house in front of her.

"Is that it?" Violet asked herself. "Huh, I guess skipping the Pokémon Center and losing part of my pride really paid off."

Violet goes to the door and knocks it. Aroma looks at her master as she tilts her head. Violet looks down at Aroma, realizing that her Pokémon was questioning her actions.

"What?" Violet responded. "This isn't one those Pokémon Trainer life simulation games where you barge in someone's house without knocking."

The door opens revealing a dashing young man in a white suit and a white top hat. Violet was shocked on how handsome the man looked.

"May I help you?" The man asked.

"A-are you Mr. Pokémon?" Violet asked.

"Yes." The man said.

"Wow." Violet seemed amazed. "I thought you would be dressed in a costume that resembles a Pokémon."

Mr. Pokémon laughed. "I get that a lot. The only people I know who would do that are Pokémon Maniacs, scientists, actors, and role-players. I'm a collector so I don't fit in any of those categories."

Violet looked confused. "Role-players?"

"Don't ask. Anyway, who are you?" Mr. Pokémon asked.

Oh, I'm Violet." Violet answered. "I was sent by Professor Elm to obtain the item you had for him."

"Ah! You're the one that Professor Elm called about. Come on in." Mr. Pokémon said, cheerfully.

Violet went into Mr. Pokémon's house which was filled with electronics and Pokémon items. Violet took a look at Mr. Pokémon's collection as Mr. Pokémon walks off and Aroma jumps up onto a couch. There was a fang from a Houndoom, a shiny feather from a Pidgey, and a feather that had different colors on it. Mr. Pokémon comes back holding something in his arms.

"Interested in the Rainbow Wing?" He said.

"This is a Rainbow Wing?" Violet asked.

"It is said that it comes from the legendary rainbow Pokémon, Ho-oh." Mr. Pokémon explained. "Fascinating, isn't it. But not nearly as fascinating as this."

Mr. Pokémon holds up what appears to be a white egg with blue and red triangle patterns on it. Violet takes the egg and looks at it.

"Is this an egg?" Violet asked.

"It was found at a day-care for Pokémon." Mr. Pokémon started to explain. "It's possible that this may be a Pokémon egg."

Violet looked shocked. "Pokémon can reproduce?"

Mr. Pokémon became unsure. "I don't know. The couple that own the day-care found the egg, they didn't see if the Pokémon laid it. Then again, that would be an invasion of privacy."

Violet rolls her eyes and then looks at the egg. She cradles the egg like a child and looks back up at Mr. Pokémon.

"Professor Elm researches Pokémon evolution so I'm sure he would be interested in that egg. Even Professor Oak is intrigue by that egg."

"Professor Oak?"

"Yes. He came to take a look at the egg himself. When he heard that someone was coming to retrieve it for Professor Elm, he decided to stay for a while. In fact, he's waiting in another room."

Mr. Pokémon shows Violet to another room where there was computer and a desk. Professor Oak was at the computer looking through some of Mr. Pokémon's discoveries.

"Excuse me, Professor Oak. This is Violet. She was the one sent here."

Professor Oak turns around. "Ah! So you're Violet. You seem to be wearing some sort of uniform."

"Uh, yes, it's my own little business that I do back at New Bark Town." Violet says scratching her head nervously. "I'm a delivery girl. I take what needs to be delivered and get the parcel to its destination no matter what the condition is."

"I see." Professor Oak kneels down towards Aroma. "So that's why Professor Elm entrusted you with this Pokémon."

"What do you mean?"

"You have a responsible attitude. Someone like you can surely take good care of this Pokémon."

"Uh…yeah…I guess." Violet had doubts, especially since she remember she rush past Cherrygrove City to get here. She didn't stop to rest.

"You know, I could use a responsible person like you."

Violet looked up at the professor confused. "What for?"

Professor Oak clears his throat. "Yes, well, you see there are many Pokémon in the world. However, not all of them have been recorded. There have been sightings off rare Pokémon, but alas we can never gain enough evidence to prove their existence. Since you have a Pokémon with you, I was wondering if you could help me with my research."

Violet straightens up. "What do you want me to do?"

"I was hoping you would go on journey with your Pokémon and be on the lookout for any rare Pokémon you see."

"Me! On a Pokémon journey?!"

"It's your choice. You don't have to if you don't want to."

Violet looks down at Aroma. She was allowed to keep the Pokémon and she was offered to do an errand for Professor Oak. This was an opportunity of a life time.

"I'll do it."

"Excellent!" Professor Oak pulls out a Pokedex. "This Pokedex is one of the newer versions. It will record any Pokémon that you encounter."

Mr. Pokémon stops the conversation. "I hate to interrupt but it is getting late. I do believe that you have to prepare for the radio show at Goldenrod City, professor."

"Ah yes, of course." Professor Oak turns to Violet. "Well, Violet, it was nice meeting. I'm counting on you."

"I won't let you down, professor." Violet salutes to Professor Oak.

Professor Oak walks past Mr. Pokémon. "You should probably stay here as well."

"I would like that." Violet accepted Mr. Pokémon's offer. The last thing she wants to do is lose the other half of her pride.

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Back at the lab at New Bark Town, there is a shadow lurking in the dark. He looks into the dark room to see if anybody was still inside. Convinced that everyone has left the lab, he picks up a rock and throws it at the window. The rock breaks through the window. The shadow pushes out some of the broken glass and crawls in the room through the window. Right at that point, he heard voices. Apparently, the professor and the lab assistant haven't left for home. The shadow grabbed the nearest Pokéball and ran back to the window. Before he can jump out the lights turned on. "Hey!" The assistant ran after him with Professor Elm running behind him. The boy jumped out the broken window and ran towards Route 29 as fast as he could. Elm and the assistant looked through the window. The assistant turns to look at the table realizing that there was one less pokéball than usual.

"One of the Pokémon has been stolen!"

"Violet! She must be near Route 29! I'll try to contact her!" Elm picks up his own personal PokéGear and tosses a phone to the assistant. "While I do, you call the police."

Back at Mr. Pokémon's house, Violet was sleeping peacefully in a guest room. Her slumber is interrupted when a cheerful ring comes from her PokéGear. Violet moans, reaches in one of the pockets of her vest, which was hanging on the left bed post, and pulls out her PokéGear. The PokéGear had brightened up to reveal the name of her caller: Professor Elm.

"If I knew I was going to get a call this late at night, I would have turned off the Pokémon Center ringtone." Violet moans. She activates the phone on the PokéGear. "Hello, Professor Elm?"

"Violet?! Where are you?!"

"At Mr. Pokémon's house. Why?"

"You're there, already!?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Oh, not good. Not good."

Violet was confused about the professor's reaction "Is something wrong?"

"There was a man or someone that broke into the lab. He has stolen one of the Pokémon that was prepared for the trainers."

"What?!" Violet snaps out of her sleepy state.

"I thought you could use your Chikorita and stop him at Route 29. However, I was expecting you to be spending the night at Cherrygrove City."

"Well, I might as well try to get to Cherrygrove City and see if can stop him there." Violet turns off the PokéGear, grabs her stuff, and quietly heads downstairs. Aroma was sleeping on the couch. Violet shakes Aroma until she finally wakes up.

"Chikaaa~"

"Sorry, Aroma. But you have to prepare for battle."

"Chika?"

Violet returns Aroma and quietly sneaks out of Mr. Pokémon's house. Once outside, Violet ran. She ran as fast as she could. Looking at some familiar landmarks she made it to Cherrygrove City. Some of the buildings were closed for the night, while others, like cafés and stores, were still open. Violet wonders around the streets under the streetlights.

_This place sure is spooky at night._ Violet thought.

She makes her way to the entrance of Route 29 just in time to see a redhead with black shirt and boots, and purple pants run out of the woods. Violet runs up to meet him.

"Hold it." Violet holds her hand up and stops the boy at his tracks. "You wouldn't happen to be the boy that broke into the professor's lab, would you?"

The boy was annoyed by Violet's appearance. "So what of it? I can make better use of this Pokémon than those loser trainers."

"But that's stealing!"

"Humph! Well, what are you gonna do about it? If you want to stop me, then try it. I have a Pokémon right here and ready to battle."

Violet pulls out a pokéball and lets Aroma out. "Okay, Aroma! Looks like your time is here!"

"Chika! Chika!"

The boy throws his pokéball and lets out a Totodile.

"Grass versus water, we have the advantage!" Violet stops to think. "That is if you know any grass-type moves. Do you know any moves?"

"Chika?"

"You don't know any good moves?!" The boy laughs. "Then this battle won't take long. Scratch that sucker."

"To-to-dile!"

Totodile starts scratching at Aroma with its tiny claws. Aroma smacks Totodile away with the leaf on her head. Then she charges at Totodile, smacking him farther away. Aroma squeaks at Violet.

"Tackle, of course. It's one of the simplest moves. Almost any Pokémon can use that. Okay Aroma, use Tackle again."

Aroma charges at Totodile for the second time. This time, Totodile jumps and flips in the air. The boy smiles.

"Good. Now charge back at it and use Scratch!"

"Aroma, counter with Tackle!"

Totodile charges at Aroma with its claws out. Aroma charges towards Totodile as well. The two collide and as they pushed each other, the boy decides to point something out.

"You know, the good thing about hands is that there are two of them."

With that said, Totodile holds back Aroma with one hand and slashes her with the other. Totodile's attack pulled through.

_At this rate, I'm gonna lose the battle. I need to find an ace in the hole, but what?_ Violet thinks for a moment, then an idea pops in her head.

"Aroma, try tackling Totodile again."

"Use the same move as before."

Once again, the two begin to collide. Just like before, Totodile tries to slash Aroma with its free hand. Suddenly, Violet yells out, "Stop it with your leaf!" Aroma whips out her leaf and smacks Totodile with it allowing Aroma to tackle it. This time, Aroma attack pulled through.

"What the heck?!"

"Aroma has her own free hand as well."

The boy growls. "Grrrr. Use Scratch, again!"

"Block the attack with your leaf."

Totodile jumps towards Aroma. Aroma holds her leaf in front of her preparing to block the attack. Instead, Totodile opens up it's big jaws and snaps down on Aroma's leaf. The boy and Violet were shock as Totodile tosses the Pokémon into the air. Aroma goes flying straight up into the air and comes back towards the ground.

"Chika! Chika! Chika!"

"Slam it with one more scratch attack!"

Totodile jumps towards the plummeting Pokémon and hits it with another attack. "CHIIKAAA!" Poor Aroma falls to the ground unable to battle.

"Oh no! Aroma! What happened?"

"Totodile figured out what those big jaws are good for. In other words, it learned Bite." The boy returned his Pokémon. "You know, it's a good thing I grabbed the right Pokémon. I don't need any weak Pokémon on my team."

Violet felt like a bullet went through her chest. The boy walks past her, leaving her to tend to her defeated Pokémon. He turns around to say, "I'm Bronze. You might as well learn my name because you'll hear it again when I become the strongest Pokémon trainer that ever lived." He then runs off. Violet looks back as she hold Aroma. The sun was just coming up signaling that morning has come. Violet returns Aroma and looks down at Route 29.

"Well, I might as well head home to see if everything's okay at the lab." As Violet head down the road with a heavy heart, only one thing was going through her mind. _Pokémon trainer. Yeah right!_

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Gold and his little sister, Heart, were heading towards the Pokémon lab. When they got there, there were a couple of police cars near the building and three Growlithes sniffing out the area. Gold and Heart looked at each other, and then ran to the lab. In the main room, Elm was talking to Officer Jenny, a few policemen were examining the broken window, and the assistant was checking the remaining pokéballs. The assistant sees the two entering and runs up to them.

"Hold it. I must examine you before you do anything else."

"What for?" Gold was a little disturbed by the man's actions.

"To keep track of people. It helps my examining skills a whole lot. If I did not keep track of people, I would have never gotten a good look at that robber."

"Robber! There was a robbery here?" squeaked Heart.

"What was stolen?" Gold asked.

"One of the starter Pokémon that we had prepared for the new trainers." The assistant said frantically. "The other two are fine but now we don't have a third Pokémon ready for the third trainer."

The assistant looks at the two kids. Gold's eyes were yellow and his hair was gold, which is probably explains how he got his name. He was wearing a red shirt with black pants. He had jacket on that was white with black sleeves, and red shoe with a white tip and black soles. Gold had a brown backpack on his back and a black PokéGear wrapped around his wrist like a watch ready to start his journey.

"Well, by the looks of you, you must be one of the new trainers." The assistant said.

"That's right, sir."

"Now let's take a look at you."

Heart also had gold hair, but it was up in two ponytails. She had brown eyes and was wearing a white dress with pink sleeves, and a pink pocket on the left side of the chest. The bottom part of her dress was also pink as well as her sandals. She came up to Gold's waist.

"Well, aren't you an adorable girl."

"Thank you. I'm hoping to be a Pokémon trainer like my big brother." Heart cheerfully said.

"As far as I'm concern, neither of you are the robbers." The assistant looks at the door to see Crystal and Silver come in.

"What the heck is going on here?" Crystal yells out. "There are cop cars outside the lab!"

The assistant looks at Silver. Silver had green-gray eyes and brown hair which was covered with silver cap with a silver feather attached to the side. He had a white shirt, silver vest, fingerless gloves, blue jeans, large brown iron-toed boots, and his white PokéGear was hanging around his neck like a pendant. Silver was carrying a blue and white backpack with a fishing rod sticking out. He, then, looks at Crystal. Crystal had pink braided hair and blue eyes. She was wearing a blue dress and a blue headband. She had blue tennis shoes, and was carrying a red and white mail bag with her blue PokéGear attached to it. Crystal notices that the assistant was looking at her funny and punches him. The assistant falls to floor.

"How dare you!" Crystal angrily says. "Weirdo!"

(A/N: Before questions are asked, I am not using the two characters that where originally made for the Gold/Silver/Crystal versions because I get the feeling that they would be used by other people as well. Instead, I want to be a little creative with the characters in this story.)

"As Crystal was saying, what the heck is going on here?" Silver asks Gold.

Officer Jenny walks up to the group and explains, "Apparently, there was a robbery here. One of the Pokémon was stolen. According to this guy who is lying on the floor," the assistant gets up, "it was a young male with long red hair.

"A starter Pokémon." Gold corrects Jenny.

"You mean one of us has to drop out." Crystal says anxiously.

Elm sighs. "I'm afraid so."

"That won't be a problem." Silver says in a content voice.

Gold was confused. "What do you mean by that?"

Suddenly, a Totodile jumps up out of nowhere and lands on Silver's head. It chuckles, happy that it caught up with Silver.

"It followed me home from the lake yesterday. Can I use this one as my Pokémon?" Silver asked.

Elm was speechless but he had to give an answer. "S-sure. It was a Totodile that got stolen so… well; the timing couldn't be more impeccable."

"And it looks like it has already grown an attraction to you so that's a head start for you." The assistant says.

Gold smiles. "I guess nobody gets left behind." His smile soon fades away. "But still, who was the thief that took the other Totodile?"

"Excuse me." Everyone turned around to Violet at the door with Aroma by her side. "I hope I didn't come at a bad time."

"Violet! You ran all the way from Mr. Pokémon's house?!" Professor Elm exclaims. "And Aroma, she looks terrible."

"Um, yeah, we had a little trouble coming back here." Violet explains.

"What kind of trouble?" Silver asks.

"It was Bronze, the thief! We battled but we got defeated, and he was able to escape with the Pokémon. I used the potion on Aroma but her wounds haven't fully healed."

"Chikaaaa…"

"This was my fault. If I was a better trainer, I would have stopped him."

Silver goes to comfort his sister. "Don't go blaming yourself. It was sudden."

"Did you say his name was Bronze?" Professor seemed familiar with the name.

"Yes."

"I should have known. That boy did seem familiar."

"Professor, do you know Bronze?" Jenny questions Elm.

"Bronze was one of the kids who wanted to start his own journey, but he was already late for the sign up. After all, we only had three Pokémon to offer so the number of trainers that were allowed to start their journey was extremely limited."

"I guess Bronze was going to start his journey whether we like or not." Gold says.

"But that won't stop us, thanks to Totodile here." Crystal says cheerfully as she points to the Totodile dancing around Silver.

"Speaking of which, I think we should get going so you three can started as well. I'll contact the other Jennies to keep an eye out for Bronze." Jenny signals the other officers to end their investigation.

Once the officers left, a spark goes through Violet's head. "I almost forgot." Violet reaches into her brown bag hanging from her shoulder.

"Where did you get the bag?" Silver asks.

"From Mr. Pokémon. He though it would be easier if I had something to carry all my stuff in. Like this, for example." She pulls out a huge egg. Everyone steps back out of amazement.

"That egg! It's huge!" The assistant exclaims.

"Is this Mr. Pokémon's findings?" Professor Elm asks.

"Yep." Violet answers. "He thinks its Pokémon egg, but we won't find that out until it hatches."

"Until then, may I examine it?" Elm asks.

"Of course! That's why you sent me to Mr. Pokémon's house, right?"

Violet hands over the Pokémon egg to Professor Elm. Crystal hops up and down in excitement.

"Now we can officially start our training." She runs over to the table where the two pokéballs were placed. "So, Totodile is taken which leaves two left. Let's take a look at you."

Crystal picks up one of the pokéballs and releases the Pokémon. It was a Chikorita.

"Chika!"

"Wait a minute." Crystal turns to Violet. "How did you get a Chikorita?"

Violet explains, "This one wasn't chosen from the last batch of trainers."

"Oh. In that case, I will take this one." Crystal picks up the Chikorita and snuggles it. "It's so cute!"

Gold goes to the table and picks up the remaining pokéball. "I guess that leaves me with…" Gold releases the Pokémon revealing a Cyndaquil. "A fire Pokémon! Awesome!" Cyndaquil happily jumps into Gold's arms. "Playful little guy, aren't you."

Totodile stops jumping, looks around, and then lowers its head.

"What's wrong, Totodile." Silver asks.

Professor Elm speaks up. "I guess Totodile is kind of shy since he's the only male Pokémon present at the moment."

Everyone was silent for a moment. Gold holds Cyndaquil at arm's length.

"My Cyndaquil is a girl?" Gold asks.

"That's correct."

Gold looks back at Cyndaquil. Cyndaquil was saying something as she waves her little arms at Gold. Though Gold could not see it, there were hearts circling Cyndaquil's head.

"By the way," Violet says, hoping to change the subject. "You can also nickname your Pokémon."

"In that case, I'm going to call you 'Gator' from now on. It fits with your massive jaws," exclaims Silver.

"I'm not going to nickname my Pokémon. It's cute the way it is," says Crystal

Gold looks at his Pokémon for a moment. "Should I really nickname it?"

Heart runs up to her brother's side. "Sally. Call it 'Sally'!"

"Why?"

"She looks like a Sally."

"Cynda! Cyndaquil!"

"See! She likes it."

"All right. I don't think I would come up with a better name, anyway."

"Great, and don't forget your Pokédexes." Violet says as she pulls out hers.

"Violet, where did you get that Pokédex?" Professor Elm asks.

"From Professor Oak. He was visiting Mr. Pokémon's house and he even gave me an errand to do. But in order to complete it I need to start a Pokémon journey."

"Well, why don't you." Crystal says cheerfully. "The more, the merrier."

"Besides, you always complete your tasks no matter what the condition is. You got a Pokémon and a Pokédex, so you're pretty much ready to go." Silver points out.

"I don't know. After our encounter with Bronze, I'm feeling a bit self-conscious."

"The robbery was sudden, like the boy said." The assistant tries to comfort Violet. "What you should do, as a trainer, is to learn from your mistakes and do better next time. We can check Aroma and have her prepared for your next battle, whenever that is."

"Oh, all right. I guess it wouldn't hurt to try."

Professor Elm butts in. "But before you start your journey, please get some proper sleep."

"Oh, right."

Violet's journey will have to wait for now. The three trainers were presented their Pokédexes and five empty pokéballs. They head towards Route 29, ready to start their journey.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Route 29**

The three trainers are at the entrance of New Bark Town ready to head out into the woods of Route 29, except……

"Did you pack a sleeping bag?"

"Yes…"

"Emergency snacks?"

"Yes."

"PokéGear?"

"Yes!"

"Clean underwear?"

"Mom! For crying out loud, I'm not going to be gone forever. I'll be back from my journey as soon as I get eight badges."

"Yes, Gold, I know. But I'm a mother, therefore I must worry."

Gold lowers his head in embarrassment. Silver was having problems with his mother as well.

"Now, I packed your clothes, toothbrush, hairbrush, an umbrella, some extra snacks in case Gator gets hungry…"

Her husband, Silver's father, was standing right behind her. "Um, dear, Silver is a big boy. I'm sure he can manage on his own."

"I know, I know. I just want to make sure that he has everything he needs for his journey."

"Don't worry, Mom." Silver says as he grabbed his backpack from his mother. "I'll be fine as long as I have Gator with me."

"All right, Silver. I guess I should be more worried about preparing Violet for her journey."

Both Silver and his father sighed. Then, his father says, "I'm pretty sure she can do that on her own."

Meanwhile, Crystal and her mother were conversing amongst themselves.

"Why don't I keep track of your money while you're own your journey."

"Oh, mom. I can keep track of my own money."

"But, Crystal, you're a shopaholic. You'll render yourself poor."

"Mom, you're just as much of a shopaholic as me."

"I know. I just get so excited when I see a new pair of shoes."

"Or that cute, blue scarf…"

"Or that adorable sweater…"

"Or that Pikachu doll which you can cuddle and snuggle…"

"Or that beautiful lamp that matches the furniture!" Both Crystal and her mother say together, and squeal. Like mother, like daughter.

Crystal stops and looks up at her mother. "You know, I guess it wouldn't hurt to leave some money with you. "

"I promise I won't spend it unless it will benefit you. Oh, and if you make it to Goldenrod City, please pay your father a visit. I called him yesterday to tell him you were going to start your journey, and he was hoping to meet you in Goldenrod."

"Okay! I'll meet him there."

Gold's little sister, Heart, looks around and then looks up at her mother. "Mommy, where's daddy?"

"Still on his travels." Gold's mother explains. "For some reason, the harbor in Olivine City ceased all activity and is not allowing other boats to come in."

"How come?" Heart asks.

"I think it has to do with the lighthouse. It hasn't been working lately." answers her mother.

Gold rolls his eyes. Gold's father travels all over the world, and every time his father discovers something new scientists would come to investigate his findings. Because of this, his father is hardly at home. Gold wishes he won't travel so much.

"Don't worry." Heart says cheerfully. "You'll meet him at Olivine when the lighthouse is working, again."

"Maybe." Gold lifts his backpack up on his shoulders. "Whelp, I better get going while the sun is still up. Bye mom! Bye Heart!"

"Please call me when you get to Cherrygrove City!" Gold's mom shouts back.

Crystal and Silver notices Gold was leaving and immediately starts running after him.

"Oh no! You're not getting ahead of me!" Silver shouts.

"Bye mom! See you around!" Crystal waves at her mother.

The trainers wave farewell to their families as they run into the woods of Route 29. The families also cry their farewells until their voices became distant then silent.

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Deep in the woods, a few Rattatas run through the trees and grass. They stop to see a trainer walking on the path. The trainer was Gold. He stops to look around.

"Looks like I lost Silver and Crystal. Oh, well. We're rivals now so there's no reason to stick together."

He continues to walk then stops again.

"The only problem is I didn't bother to bring a map with me." He says angrily. "Hopefully, this path will lead me to Cherrygrove."

The Rattatas were chatting amongst themselves. They were planning to steal food from Gold. Then the Rattatas follow Gold until they found a place to launch out and attack. They hid in bush and wait until Gold pass them. Gold stops for the third time.

"On the other hand, it does get kind of lonely. I guess it wouldn't hurt to let out Cyndaquil…er…Sally."

Gold pulls out a pokéball and lets out Sally. The Rattatas became surprise as a bright light comes out of the pokéball and forms into a Cyndaquil. Sally became happy to be let out to run around. The Rattatas realize they were dealing with a Pokémon trainer and became worried. It didn't quite hit them until now that nobody travels into the wilderness without a Pokémon as a partner. It has become basic common sense. One of the Rattatas pointed out that there was five of them against one Pokémon. They could outmatch them. The other Rattatas agreed and turn around to prepare to attack. When they look back, however, Gold and Sally were already gone. Gold had walked past them while they weren't looking. The Rattatas run done the path to catch up with their victim. Gold was walking with Sally next to him. Sally becomes excited, suddenly, a runs towards a berry tree.

"A berry tree. You want a snack don't you Sally."

Sally prepares herself and tackles the tree with her head.

"Ah, Tackle. One of the basic moves for a starter Pokémon."

Some berries fall to the ground. Sally picks up a few joyfully. As Sally ate, Gold picks up the rest. Then Gold gets an idea. He reaches into his backpack and pulls out a small pouch. He, then, pulls out some leather string and ties it on the pouch making a necklace. He puts the berries in the pouch and puts the necklace on Sally.

"See this." Gold points at the pouch, "This pouch will hold your berries. So whenever you need a snack, you can pull it out and eat it."

Sally became happy. She thought this would be a great way to show her master that she can be responsible. She'll show more than that, though. When Gold zips up his backpack, a Rattata tackles his face. Gold gets up, in a daze, to see three Rattatas in front of him.

"What the…"

Gold immediately pulls out his Pokédex to get an explanation.

Rattata: The Rat Pokémon. It eats anything. Wherever food is available, it will settle down and produce offspring continuously.

"Charming." Gold says, but his odd expression fades away when he realizes something. "Wait a minute, food?!"

Gold looks at the three Rattatas who were tugging on his backpack, trying to get the snacks out. He looks at Sally who was cornered by two Rattatas. Those two can smell food from Sally's pouch. Sally backs away frightened.

"Sally! Don't let those guys bully you. Hit them with Tackle."

Hearing her master's orders, Sally charges the two Rattatas. She hits one and gets smack with the other.

"Use Leer!"

Sally stares angrily at the Rattatas, hoping to scare them. However, the two did not let their guard down. Instead, one of the Rattata gets up, puts its finger to mouth with a cute face, and wags its tail. Sally stops wondering what it was doing then gets tackled by the other Rattata.

"Nice way of using Tail Whip. All right, no more Mister Nice Guy." Gold snatches his backpack from the three Rattatas then turns to Sally. "All right, Sally. Try to follow my directions directly."

Sally nods at her master and prepares for battle.

"Okay. Tackle!"

Sally tackles one of the Rattata. The second one comes charging towards her.

"Jump!"

Sally jumps and the Rattata runs under her hitting a tree.

"Good. Now Tackle it."

Sally tackles the Rattata against the tree. Berries fall as the tree is being hit.

"Duck!"

Sally did and the other Rattata hits the berry tree. Just like that, the two Rattata were defeated.

"Good work, Sally!"

Sally jumps up with joy. Her triumphant was cut short when another Rattata tackled her.

"Shoot! I forgot about the other three!"

The three Rattatas surround Sally.

"This is going to be tough. Sally, Tackle!"

Sally charges towards the one in front of her. The Rattata dodge and tackles her. A second one comes and tackles her, too.

"Oh, boy. Leer!"

Sally used Leer, but like before the Rattatas won't lower their guard.

"I guess the sheer numbers gives them confidence. Sally, try Tackle again!"

Once again, Sally aims at the one in front of her. This time, the third Rattata comes out and tackles Sally with great amount of speed and force.

"Whoa! That's a Quick Attack. The third one must be the strongest." He looks at Sally. Sally was breathing very hard. _Sally is only a beginner and so am I. We can't take on an ambush like this. I have to figure out something, but what._

Suddenly, Sally eats one of the berries in her pouch and prepares for an attack. She, then, squeals as fire comes out her back and black smoke shoots out of her mouth, blinding the Rattatas.

_Wait a minute. That's Smokescreen! That's it!_

Gold cries out to Sally. "Sally, use Smokescreen again!"

Sally releases more smoke. The Rattatas could not see the Cyndaquil or the trainer. Then they heard Gold's voice.

"Now! Tackle!"

Sally bursts through the clouds smacking one of the Rattatas. The other two became frighten and soon they were knocked out as well. When the smoke cleared, three unconscious Rattatas laid on the ground. Gold looks at the berry tree where the other two laid.

"C'mon, Sally, let's go. The berries that fell during the battle should satisfy the Rattatas hunger once they wake up." Gold looks back at the Rattata as he and Sally walk away. "Funny how that works out."

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Cyndaquil: The Fire Mouse Pokémon. It is timid, and always curls itself up in a ball. If attacked, it flares up its back for protection.

"Is that so?" Gold looks at Sally. "You don't seem timid to me."

Gold was sitting at some rocks. They needed to rest after the ambush that happened moments ago.

"Speaking of which," Gold says looking at his Pokédex, "That sure was impeccable timing with the Smokescreen. I thought we were going to lose."

Sally blushes a little.

"Hey, if you know Smokescreen, then maybe you are close to learning some fire moves." Gold says excitedly. "We just need to train a little more."

Gold gets up and grabs his backpack. He, then, pulls out Sally's pokéball.

"Well, Sally. It's been fun but I think you should relax for the rest of the trip."

Gold says "Return!" and Sally flashes a red light. The light goes into the pokéball. Gold puts the pokéball on his belt, and runs down the path. No sooner did he start running did he trip on a rock.

"Well, that was graceful of me."

Gold gets up and dusts himself. Then, he heard something say something.

"Geeeeeeeoooooduuuuude…"

Gold turns around to see an angry Geodude. Gold steps back as the Geodude starts jumping towards him.

"Gak! What is that?!" Gold pulls out his Pokédex.

Geodude: The Rock Pokémon. Most people may not notice, but a closer look should reveal that there are many Geodude around.

"Big help. How well does fire do against rock?"

"Not well, so good luck with that!"

"Great! I get the one Pokédex with an attitude."

Geodude starts to roll on the ground towards Gold at high speeds. Gold begins to run.

"Aaaaaaaaaaah! I also encounter Geodude that knows Rollout!"

A spark goes through Gold's head as he ran.

"Wait a minute. I can use Smokescreen to confuse it."

Gold pulls out Sally's pokéball, not paying attention to where he was going. He smacks into a tree knocking an Exeggcute out of the branches. Seeing the attacking Geodude, the Exeggcute became frighten and use Hypnosis. The Geodude soon came to a stop and falls into a deep sleep. Gold picks up his pokéball, and makes a break for it before the Hypnosis affected him. He, then, runs into something again. This time he ran into a girl.

"Oh man! I'm so sorry! Are you okay?" Gold asks helping the girl up.

"It's okay. I'm fine." The girl had a black hair pushed back by a headband and in a pink dress. "But why were you running?"

"I got a Geodude angry at me and it used Rollout." Gold explains.

The girl tilts her head in confusion. "But don't you have a Pokémon?"

"About that, you see, fire Pokémon don't do well against rock."

"Really? You have a fire Pokémon? Can I see it?" The girl seemed eager all of a sudden.

Gold pulls out his pokéball and releases Sally.

"This is Sally, my Cyndaquil."

"Awwwwwwwww! It's cute! Even with that necklace." The girl squeals. "I know what would make it cuter."

The girl pulls out a pink ribbon and wraps it around Sally's neck under the necklace. She ties the ribbon into a bow.

"There we go." The girl says cheerfully.

Gold was a little uncomfortable. He knows Sally is a female, but the pink bow was too much. Sally wasn't all that delighted, either.

"Umm…yeah…thanks…um…"

"Tuscany."

"Pardon?"

"Tuscany. I'm the second oldest of a family of seven brothers and sisters. I even have my own Pokémon. See?"

Tuscany pulls out a pink pokéball with a heart on it and releases a frilly yet mean-looking Pokémon. It also had a pink bow around its neck.

"This is my Snubby!" Tuscany picks up Snubby and snuggles it.

"Snubby?" Gold pulls out his Pokédex, again, to get a better description.

Snubbull: The Fairy Pokémon. Although it looks frightening, it is actually kind and affectionate. It is very popular among women.

(A/N: Okay, okay. I'm using the Pokédex entries from the Gold/Silver/Crystal games. I can't seem to make up my own Pokédex entries.)

Tuscany tilts her head. "Do use that Pokédex every time you see a Pokémon?"

"Yeah. I'm a novice, you see." Gold scratches the back of his head. He, then, begins to smile. "Hey, how about a Pokémon battle?"

"Sorry, but no." Tuscany says. "Snubby already had enough battling for one day. This one girl, Crystal I do believe her name was, defeated us a few moments ago."

Gold immediately recognizes the name. Could it be the same Crystal from New Bark Town?

"Well, anyway, it's getting late. We should get back to Cherrygrove City." Tuscany returns Snubby.

Before Tuscany walks away, Gold asks, "Hey, could you show me the way to Cherrygrove City?"

"Sure. Follow me!" Tuscany takes Gold arm and leads (or drags) him to Cherrygrove City. Sally runs after them.

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The sky was a light orange with a hint of purple coming from the horizon. From the woods of Route 29, Tuscany and Gold enters the city. Sally was caught up with them panting.

"Finally, Cherrygrove City." Gold says excitedly

Tuscany looks down at Gold's feet were Sally was. "I think you need to take your Cyndaquil to the Pokémon Center."

Gold looks down. "Whoops! Sorry, Sally." Gold returns Sally. "Could you show me where it is?"

Tuscany points at a direction. "Go down that road. It's a giant building with a sign. You can't miss it."

"Thank you very much."

Gold says his goodbyes and runs down the road. Sure enough, there was sign with words "Pokémon Center: We will heal your Pokémon."

_She was right. You can't miss it. _Gold thought.

Just then, a trainer runs up to him.

"Excuse me," he says, "Do you know where the Pokémon Center is?"

Gold sighs. Once inside, there is a woman with pink hair and a nurse's outfit at the counter. Her hair was in ponytails made into to loops.

"Hello there. Welcome to the Pokémon Center. I'm Nurse Joy. May I help you?" The woman says professional.

"Yeah, can you help my Cyndaquil here?" Gold asks as he holds out Sally's pokéball. "We ran into a little Rattata problem."

"Certainly. No problem." Nurse Joy says cheerfully.

"Gold, is that you?"

Gold turns around to see Silver walking in. Nurse Joy continues her business.

"Is there any Pokémon that needs a check up?"

"Yeah. Here you go."

Silver pulls out two pokeballs. Silver had two Pokémon? Nurse Joy takes the pokeballs.

"Thank you. I'll call you when they're ready." Nurse walks away.

Once Nurse Joy was gone, Gold decides to catch up with Silver.

"So, you already caught you're second Pokémon? That quickly?!"

"Yep. It's a Sentret." Silver says proudly. "Normal-type Pokémon can learn all kinds of moves."

Gold looks at Silver with even more disbelief. Silver's choice of Pokémon made his goal seem even more impossible.

"What took you boys so long?"

They look up to see Crystal coming down the stairs.

"Crystal you got here before Silver and I?"

"You got that right!" Crystal winks at them.

Silver became upset. "That makes me in last place!"

Crystal runs up to the two. "So, what have you two been doing?"

Gold perked up. This was his chance to impress his friends. "Well, we got into a battle with some wild Pokémon and now she knows a new move."

"That's nothing! My cute Chikorita won her first battle." Crystal brags.

"You had your first battle?!" Silver was troubled. "I'm not going to be left behind. Gold did you have your first battle, yet?"

"No."

"Good! Tomorrow, we are going to battle. I want to see how strong your Cyndaquil got."

Gold was energetic. What better way to show off Sally's strength then to prove it to his friend (or rival). A voice is heard from the intercom.

"Attention! Attention! Crystal, your Pokémon are fully healed! Please come to the counter to retrieve them!"

A Chansey comes into the room holding two pokéballs. She recognizes Crystal right away and hands her Pokémon.

"You caught a Pokémon, too?" Gold says curiously.

"Yep. Take a look."

Crystal releases one her Pokémon. It was a grassy Pokémon called Oddish.

"Isn't it cute?" Crystal snuggles her Oddish.

It soon hit Gold. He was the only one with just his starter Pokémon. He had many chances to catch a Pokémon. That time with the Rattatas, the sleeping Geodude, and the confused Exeggcute. He could have caught any of them, but instead left them there.

"Gold and Silver! Your Pokémon are fully healed! Please come to the counter to retrieve them!"

A Chansey comes out and hands Gold and Silver their Pokémon. It runs back to the room.

"Well, Gold, you better be ready tomorrow." Silver says. "And don't forget, just because we're friends doesn't mean I'll go easy on you!"

Silver runs upstairs where the beds were. Crystal follows him. Gold stands there thinking.

_I hope it's a one-on-one._


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: A Guide in Cherrygrove City**

It's morning in Cherrygrove City. The sun comes up in the horizon shining its light on the sleeping inhabitants. The sun light shines through the windows of the Pokémon Center. Gold was sleeping in one of the beds. Gold felt a bouncing feeling that was interrupting his sleep. He gets up to see Sally bouncing on the bed. She was excited about something.

"Hold on. Hold on. I'm getting up." Gold says.

He gets up and rubs the sleep out of his eyes. He gets changed and walks do stairs where Silver and Crystal was. Sally immediately runs over to Silver and tugs on his pant leg.

"Your Cyndaquil seems energetic today." Silver says looking down at Sally.

Sally runs over to Gold and pushes him towards Silver. She, then, runs towards the middle and jumps up and down in excitement. Gold realizes why Sally was acting strangely.

"Oh, that's right. I told Sally last night that you challenged me to a Pokémon battle." Gold explains.

"In that case, let's not keep her waiting. Let's go outside and battle, right now!" Silver says.

The two head outside. Crystal tags along to watch the two trainers battle. Gold and Silver stand 50ft. away from each other to give their Pokémon space.

"Let's battle with our starters, meaning one-on-one!" Silver shouts to Gold.

"Fine with me!" Gold shouts back. He points forward and says, "You go, Sally!"

Sally runs towards the middle of the field, ready to battle. Silver pulls out a pokéball and lets out his Totodile, Gator.

"I got the information about you, Chikorita." Crystal says. "Let's check out the other two starters."

Cyndaquil: The Fire Mouse Pokémon. The fire that spouts from its back burns hottest when angry. The flaring flames intimidate foes.

Totodile: The Big Jaw Pokémon. This rough critter chomps at any moving object it sees. Turning your back on it is not recommended.

Gold overhears the Pokédex and says, "We won't be turning our backs since we're going to try and take you down."

"We won't be intimidated by the flames since Gator can withstand fire." Silver says back.

"You two seem confident." Crystal says. "With that said, let's start the battle."

Gold calls his attack first. "We'll give you a reason to fear the flames! Sally, use Smokescreen!"

The flames burst from Sally's back as she opens her mouth and blows out a huge cloud of smoke. Silver became shock because he lost vision of his Pokémon. Seeing the fear in his friend's eyes, Gold knew he had the upper hand.

"Now, Sally, Tackle."

Sally looks through the smoke and charges towards Gator. Silver makes a quick command.

"Gator! Spin and use Scratch!"

Gator spins around with his claws sticking out. Sally smacks against the sharp claws causing a bit of damage. The wind comes and blows the smoke away to reveal the Pokémon. Gold was surprise as to what happen.

"What the heck was that?!" he says.

Silver scratches the back of his head. "I panicked. I went with the first thing that went into my head."

"It worked." Crystal says from the sidelines.

"All right. Gator, Scratch at Sally!" Silver commands Gator.

Gator charges at Sally with its claws out. Sally dodges Gator's attack which caused Gator to smack its claws against the ground. Gator did not give up. He continues slashing at Sally.

"Good work, Sally. Keep dodging." Gold encourages Sally. _It looks like Gator doesn't know the attack Bite, yet._

Something caught Sally's eye and she looks away from Gator. Gator was able to land an attack. Sally is smacked to the ground. She gets up, rubbing her face.

_What happened?!_ Gold thought. _She just suddenly stopped dodging._

Gold had to come up with an attack right now.

"Sally, Tackle!"

Sally hits Gator in the stomach with her head. Gator slides backwards on the ground.

"Good! Do it again!"

Sally charges at Gator, again.

"Gator, use Rage!"

Gator stands up straight and endures the tackle. Gator falls to the ground but then stands up looking stronger than before.

"What's going on?"

"Rage." Silver answers Gold. "The Pokémon endures the attack and then attacks back with a stronger attack. The more damage it takes the more powerful the attack will become."

Gator charges at Sally and tackles her sending the Cyndaquil flying a couple feet back.

_Man, I bet that hurt. It doesn't look like Sally can stand another hit like that. _Gold thought._ How am I going to attack if it's just going to make my opponent stronger? I need a plan._

"Gator, go for another hit!"

"Sally, dodge!"

As they were command to do so, Gator continues to charge at Sally and Sally kept dodging. Suddenly, something caught Sally's eye once again, distracting the Pokémon long enough for Gator to make contact. Sally flies backwards onto the ground. This time, Sally did not get up.

"I guess that's it." Crystal says, then announces the winner. "Looks like Silver wins the battle."

Gold runs up to Sally and scoops her up. Silver walks up to Gold and looks down at Sally.

"I don't think that was a fair fight." Silver says. "Sally kept looking at her bow."

Gold looks down at Sally. She still had the pink bow that Tuscany put on.

"Is that what dropped Sally's guard?!" Gold asks.

"The ends of the bow must have been flapping at your Cyndaquil's eyes. Sally must have thought there was another Pokémon or something." Crystal says. "That's the problem with some accessories. They sometimes get in the way when the Pokémon wears them."

"Were did you get that bow, anyway." Silver asks.

"A girl name Tuscany put it on." Gold says.

"Tuscany? I think I battle that girl." Crystal says. "She gave one to Chikorita but I took it off. I thought I save it for another Pokémon since Chikorita is already cute."

Gold takes the bow off Sally who was regaining conscious. "Well, Sally didn't seem to like the bow anyway. I don't think I'll be saving this bow, either."

"How come? It's cute!" Crystal says.

Gold and Silver moans. One thing that Crystal fails to understand is that most boys are not the cute type.

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Gold, Silver, and Crystal were walking down the road. The two boys were, actually, following Crystal, who led them to a bunch of stores.

"This is what you wanted to show us?" Silver asks.

"Yep. They have all sorts of stuff here." Crystal says cheerfully.

"Figures." Gold says disappointed. "With a shopaholic like you, this is a typical place to wind up at."

"Humph. Well, do you two have anything better to do?" Crystal asks.

"Uh, yeah. We could find the exit so we can head to the next destination." Gold says.

"Or we can see what that guy is doing." Silver says pointing at an old man.

"That was random. Why do you want to do that?" Gold asks Silver.

"I don't know. I'm just curious. Besides, it's better than to hang out with her." Silver says pointing at a blank spot. "Where'd Crystal go?"

"She must've got bored and went right head with her shopping." Gold says. "C'mon, let's check out that old man then find a way out of here."

Silver runs over to the man in delight. The old man had glasses, a white beard that reached down to his neck, bald at the top of his head, and had a brown robe with brown shoes.

"Excuse me, sir," Gold greets the man with an uneasy feeling, "my friend said that you were an interesting person and wanted to meet."

The man chuckled and then says, "Then your friend has good judgment. You see, I'm the Guide Gent."

"The want?" Gold was confused.

"The Guide Gent! I use to be a stronger trainer myself." The old man pulls out a blue pokéball with stripes on the top and releases a Staryu.

"Awesome!" Silvers shouts and pulls out his Pokédex.

Staryu: The Star Shape Pokémon. Even if its body is torn, it can regenerate as long as the glowing central core remains intact.

"Yep. Staryu and I have been through a lot. But now those days are long gone. Today, I give a few pointers to Pokémon trainers that are just starting their journey."

Silver raises his hand. "We're young trainers that are just starting our journey. All three of us came from New Bark Town."

"The third one is right now shopping." Gold adds.

"She has the right idea." Gold and Silver were stunned by the Guide Gent's words. "Some stores sell items that trainers will need on their journey, like medicine and pokéballs."

"I thought that's what Pokémon Centers were for." Gold says.

"True, but it would be bad it your Pokémon got hurt and there are no Pokémon Centers nearby." the Guide Gent says.

"What else should we know?" Silver asks.

The Guide Gent looks at Staryu. "Well, there are different places were Pokémon can be."

Hearing those words, Staryu jumps up in the air and spins towards the path, away from the buildings. The two trainers run after Staryu with the Guide Gent following slowly. They stop at a beach connected to the sea were Staryu happily splashes in the water.

"You may be aware of this, but you can find different types of Pokémon in specific areas. The sea, caves, mountains, even the city can be filled with Pokémon." The Guide Gent explains. "Some Pokémon a very rare while others you can find just about anywhere. Then, there are legendaries."

"Legendaries?" Gold looks up to the man as he questions.

"Yes, legendaries. The strongest Pokémon out there." The Guide Gent says with an astounding voice. "If you are lucky enough, you may see one yourself. Catching one is a very rare opportunity."

"Wow! So catching one will make a strong trainer?!" Silver asks with excitement.

"Not exactly." The man says and Silver's excitement fades. "Catching a legendary Pokémon does not automatically make you a strong trainer. First of all, catching a legendary is a very difficult task. Regular pokéballs won't work and you must overpower the Pokémon as well. If you do catch it, you must train alongside it just like any ordinary Pokémon. You can't be cocky just because you have a legendary because if a trainer finds a weakness then you're finish."

Gold wasn't paying too much attention to the old man, but he heard enough to understand the man's point. Becoming a champion was beginning to sound harder than usual. The silence broken when said something and points at the sea. A man in a boat was coming to the shore. Excited, Silver runs towards the boat with Gold behind him.

"Hey there, what were you doing at sea?" Silver says to the man after he got down from the boat.

"Catching Pokémon. I'm a fisherman after all." The man says. "See that small island over there? That is my own personal fishing spot." The fisherman, then, pulls out a blue gem shaped like a teardrop with string strung through it. "I find this while fishing. I think it's one of those things, uh, Mystic Water. That's what they called."

"Yes it is." The Guide Gent comes behind the two trainers with his Staryu. "The Mystic Water is a beautiful necklace. Many water Pokémon adore it."

"Hoy, old man. I see your still kicking." The fisherman says.

"Just giving some advice to some new trainers."

"New, eh? So you two are just starting out."

"Yes, sir." Gold says to the fisherman.

Silver points at the Mystic Water and asks, "Do water Pokémon really like that necklace?" No sooner did he ask the question, Gator pops out of his pokéball and starts begging for the Mystic Water.

"I'll take that as a yes." Gold answers.

"Well, here you go." The fisherman holds at the Mystic Water to Gator, which Gator took happily and puts it around his neck.

"Is it alright?" Gold asks.

"I don't really need it. I find a few of those every week, so it no big deal."

"Thanks, sir." Silver says cheerfully. "Gator seems really happy." Gator was bouncing up and down until Silver caught him.

"By the way," The Guide Gent begins to speak, "why did you take boat here instead of the docks?"

"It was crowded with all sorts of fisherman there. I should go back to see if there's room to dock the boat." The fisherman jumps and says goodbye to the trainers and the Guide Gent as he rides off.

------------------------------------------------------

The two trainers walk down the road with Guide Gent who was explaining about the areas to look out for when traveling Johto. Silver was carrying Gator in his arms and Staryu was back in its pokéball.

"You sure know a lot." Silver says.

"Thanks. However, that was back when I was a trainer." The Guide Gent says. "Some things might have changed over the years. It those changes that new trainers go and discover brand new things. Who knows? You two, as well as your friends, may discover something that no one else has."

Gold begins to think. What is there to discover that no one else was able to uncover? Will he become a champion? Will he make a mark on the world?

"You youngsters are very lucky. Back then, trainers had to be gym leaders, professors, or champions. Now humans can do a lot of things with Pokémon. Dancing, performing, exploring, and much more."

They approach a small house just as the Guide Gent finishes his sentence.

"What's this place, old man?" Gold asks.

"This. This is my house." The Guide Gent says. "I should relax for the rest of the day. Thank you for your company."

"No problem." Silver salutes to the old man. Gator mimics him.

"I notice that you two are carrying a PokéGear, so take this as a token of my gratitude." The Guide Gent pulled out two chips. "Put this in your PokéGear and you have your own portable map."

"Sweet." Silver takes the chip and put it in his PokéGear.

"Thank you very much. I need this since I forgot to bring one." Gold thinks for a moment then asks, "Could I have another one for Crystal? I'm sure she is going to need one for her PokéGear."

"Of course." The Guide Gent gives another chip to Gold. "Well, I shouldn't delay your journey any longer. Goodbye and good luck, young ones."

"Thanks it was nice seeing you." Silver says. The trainers wave goodbye to the old man as they run off. They kept running until they were back at the stores where Crystal was waiting for them.

"Where have you guys run off to?" She asks agitated.

"We took a tour around Cherrygrove." Gold says then pulls out the chip. "Here's a souvenir. A map for your PokéGear."

"Cool. I forgot to bring one." Crystal looks back at the stores. "Come to think of it, I guess I should have bought one at the store."

Silver was messing with his PokéGear. Gator was on his head. "Wow, these things are awesome! Come on!"

Gold and Crystal follow Silver until they stopped at a path out of Cherrygrove City.

"This is Route 30. A path heading towards our next destination." Silver says proudly.

Gold smiles with excitement. "Well, let's get going."

Crystal gasps. "What's that?!"

Gold looks at the direction that Crystal was pointing at, but he doesn't see anything. He then heard a faint sound. "Made you look!" Gold turns around and sees his friends leaving without him.

"HEY!" Gold starts running after them. "That's not fair!"

"Sorry, Gold!" Crystal says. Crystal and Silver were laughing as Gold runs after them.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: My Friend, My Rival**

Dawn, a new day begins. The creatures of the forest begin to awake. The warm sun rises to the sky, the cool air begins to fade, the Spinarak dangling over your head…

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!"

Apparently, Gold forgot to zip up his tent. After a moment of chaos, Gold packs up his tent and sleeping bag, and continues on with his journey. He pulls out a pokeball and releases the Spinarak inside. The small Pokémon looks up at his new partner.

"You sure gave me a fright little guy. I wonder if I should give a nickname."

Gold examines Spinarak for a while. The Spinarak turns around and scuttles to a nearby tree. The tree was growing berries, which Spinarak happily ate. Gold walks up to the tree and sees a house nearby. A man walks out of the house with a basket in his hand. He sees Gold near the berry tree.

"May I help you?" he asks.

"Uh, no, my Spinarak climbed up this tree. That's all."

The man goes up to the tree and sees Spinarak on one of the branches. "I see. So it's eating the berries off my berry tree."

"Yeah, it—wait, YOUR berry tree?! I-I didn't know!"

The man laughs. "It's all right. Anybody can pick from it. I come every day take a few before the Pokémon have at it."

Gold sigh with relief. He looks up at Spinarak who is now sleeping on the branch. He returns Spinarak and takes a few berries himself.

"You very smart for picking these berries." The man says.

Gold looks up confused. "What do you mean?"

The man explains. "These berries, when a Pokémon eats them, the Pokémon gain some energy. It is very helpful in battle."

Gold thinks for a moment. He, then, releases Sally from her pokéball. Sally was wearing a pouch that he made to put all her berries. Gold looks down at Sally and examines the pouch.

"If that's the case, then I got to start making more of these."

"A berry pouch for your Pokémon. Very clever." The man admires Gold's idea.

"Thanks for the compliment and the berries. I'd better get going to the next city. Bye!"

Gold waves goodbye to the man as he runs to his next destination. Sally happily runs with him.

* * *

Gold continues down the path as Sally rests on his head. He messes with his PokéGear.

"According to the Map app, our next destination is Violet City. Heh, I wonder what Silver is going to think when he finds out that the city has the same name as his sister."

He stops to see a boy with a white shirt, blue shorts, blue shoes, and a blue cap turned backwards on his head. The boy looked quite angry.

"What's wrong with you?" Gold asks.

"Ah, I lost a battle with some other trainer." The boy says annoyed. "I got to get more focus. I can't be a great trainer if I keep losing. Maybe if I found a weaker trainer…"

He takes a good look at Gold and sees Sally on his head. The boy perks up.

"Hey, you look weak enough. Want to battle?"

Gold was shocked. "Weak?! Me?!"

"Yeah you! Now let's battle!"

"Fine! But you're going to regret saying such things! Let's go Sally!"

Sally jumps down on his head and prepares for battle. The boy pulls out a pokéball and releases his Pokémon.

"Ratatta! GO!"

Indeed, a Rattata did appear. Gold smiles. _We are all too prepared for this._

"All right, Sally. Time to redeem ourselves!"

"Same here, Rattata!"

The two Pokémon are ready for battle. The boy takes the first move.

"Rattata, Tackle!"

Rattata charges a Sally.

"Sally, Smokescreen!"

Flames appear on Sally's back as she lets out a black fog. Unable to see Sally, the Rattata stops in confusion.

"Hey! What'd you do?!"

The boy and his Pokémon stand their stunned. Gold says his command.

"Sally, Tackle."

Sally appears right behind Rattata and smacks it to the ground. She, then, disappears in the black smoke.

"Hey, that's cheating!" The boy yells.

"Using Smokescreen is not cheating! It is part of a strategy!" Gold yells back. Then, he takes another move. "Sally, Tackle again!"

Sally appears to the right of Rattata and hits it again. The Smokescreen soon clears up to show Rattata unconscious on the ground. The battle was over just as it begun.

"Wow. I was expecting this to last a little longer." Gold says with disappointment.

The boy returns his Pokémon angrily. He glares at Gold.

"You must've cheated somehow!"

Gold becomes frustrated. "I told you, using Smokescreen is not cheating." He returns Sally then continues his explanation. "It's part of a strategy."

"Strategy? What does that have to do with Pokémon battling?"

"Don't you watch the battles on TV?"

"Yeah? So?"

Gold thinks for a moment. How was he supposed to explain strategy in a battle when it pretty much happens in front of this boy? He can't even keep up with his grades at school.

"Forget it. I got to get to the next town so I can obtain my first badge." Gold walks off.

The boy looks up at him in amazement. "You're a Pokémon trainer?!"

Gold looks back at him. "Yeah. Sally and I are going to challenge the Pokémon League. Why else would I be walking around here?"

The boy thinks for a moment, then smiles. "How about we trade? My Rattata for your Cyndaquil."

"Why would I want to do that?" Gold asks.

"Come on. I'm trying to become a Pokémon trainer, too. I need strong Pokémon if I want to be the best. Think of it as a sign of our friendship."

"Some friend." Gold storms off. The boy follows him.

* * *

The boy has been following Gold for the past hour in the forest.

"Please?"

"No."

"I'll give you 1000 Poké."

"No!"

"I'll throw in my potions and antidotes."

"Why the heck do you need my Cyndaquil so badly?! You seem too young to become a Pokémon trainer."

"I want to show everyone that I can become a trainer despite my young age. But I need a very strong Pokémon to prove that."

"You got all the supplies you need in a battle. Why don't you train your Rattata?"

"Training is boring."

"Then it's no wonder why you haven't become a Pokémon trainer."

The boy runs in front of Gold to stop him. He had a fuming look on his face. "What do you mean by that?!"

"Pokémon become stronger if you train them right. That's the reason why were called "trainers". Everyone knows that."

The boy pouts. "Well, smarty-pants, I know that a Pokémon trainer has more than one Pokémon. What else do you have?"

"Well…" Gold pulls out a pokéball and lets out his Spinarak. Spinarak looks around and scuttles towards the nearest tree. It rests on one of the branches. The boy pauses for a moment looking at Gold. He became surprised when Gold was not releasing anymore. "That's it?!" That's pretty pathetic!" The boy laughs.

Gold growls. "Look who's talking."

The boy jumps on Gold enraged. Gold falls to the ground as the boy wrestles him. "Whoa! Whoa! Knock it off!" Another boy with a straw hat appears and pries him off of Gold. He also had a white sleeveless shirt on with blue shorts and sandals. He carried a net and a small cage which housed a Weedle. "What is going on?"

"This guy calls himself a trainer but he doesn't have more than two Pokémon. Plus, he doesn't even have his first badge."

The boy in the straw hat looks at Gold. "A trainer, huh? What's his name?"

Gold and the boy were silent. Gold frowns and says, "You know, we didn't even introduce ourselves. We skipped the introductions and headed straight into battle."

"Well then, how about I start." The boy in the straw hat says happily. "My name is Wade. I'm a bug collector, as you can tell by my little friend here. And you are?"

"Gold from New Bark Town. I'm heading to Violet City to claim my first badge."

The two look at the unnamed boy. Finally, he sighs and says, "Joey."

Wade smiles. "Great. Now that we done all the introductions, how about we battle? My Weedle against your Spinarak."

Gold was astonished. "How did you know I have a Spinarak?"

Wade points up. "It's dangling over your head."

Gold looks up and Spinarak plops on his head. Gold freaks out by the Pokémon's surprise attack. He takes Spinarak off his face. "You sure like to give me the scare."

Wade opens the cage to release his Weedle. "This Weedle is my recent addition, so this is his first battle."

"Same with Spinny here."

"Spinny?" Joey looks at Gold oddly.

"He's a spinoff of a spider and he can spin webs. Get it?"

(A/N: The critics give that joke two thumbs down.)

Gold continues. "Bad jokes aside, Spinny just seem like a common name for a Spinarak."

"Okay. Let's do this." Weedle crawls to the center. Spinny does the same. Wade gives the first command. "Weedle, use String Shot."

Weedle shoots out a string of silk at Spinny.

"Spinny, jump!"

Spinny does so and the shot misses him. Spinny lands on the silky string and starts to slide towards Weedle. Wade is stunned by the move.

"Now ram it with Poison Sting."

Spinny lowers its head and points its horn at Weedle. The horn makes contact with Weedle, but it got up without any trouble.

"What the-"

"Sorry, Gold, but Weedle is a Bug and Poison type."

Weedle tackles Spinny with its own Poison Sting. Spinny got up unfazed as well. _Spinny must be Poison type, too. We got to land more hits if we want to win this battle._

"Spinny! Use Sting Shot."

Spinny shots the silky string at Weedle.

"Weedle, counter with your own String Shot!"

Weedle blocks Spinny attack with its own.

"Spinny, move to a different position and try again."

Spinny does so.

"Weedle, try to slow him down with your String Shot.

Weedle does so. For the next few minutes, the two bug Pokémon try to hit each other with their attacks in hopes to slow the other down. They soon stop when most of the area was covered in silky strings.

"Nice going, geniuses! Now what?!" Joey yells.

Gold thinks for a moment and he gets an idea.

"Spinny get on the strings!"

Spinny climbs on the strings as his trainer commands him to.

"Now slide and use Poison Sting on Weedle!"

Just like before, Spinny slides towards Weedle and hits it. Weedle gets up from the surprise attack.

"Turn around and hit it again."

With the String Shots everywhere, Spinny was able to use them as trails. He finds another that leads to his opponent and was able to hit Weedle a second time; and a third.

"Hey! Two can play at this game."

Weedle gets on the String Shots and starts sliding. The two skate around the silk, attempting to hit their opponents. Spinny gets a hit. Weedle turns around. Weedle gets a hit. Spinny slides and turns. Spinny gets a hit. Weedle maneuvers and gets a hit. Spinny skates and turns. Weedle gets a hit. _What the-_ Weedle was able to strike twice before Spinny got to attack. _That Pokémon has more speed than Spinny. At this rate, we're going to lose._

Gold had to think of something. Then he realizes something. _We've been using the same move over and over again, because Wade has been copying my movements. Let's see him copy this. _The two were about to collide when Gold shouts out his command.

"Spinny! String Shot!"

Spinny shots at Weedle.

"Weedle!"

Because of Weedle's speed, the string shot hit before Wade got a chance to shout a command. Weedle was tied to the ground letting Spinny to make a critical hit.

"Weedle! Try to hit him."

"Fight back, Spinny. Then hit it one more time."

Spinny skates on the silks, shooting at any String Shot that came his way. Finally, Spinny was able take make his last hit. Weedle was knocked out of the sticky silk and on the ground. It did not get up. Wade sighs.

"I guess that's it." Wade returns Weedle.

"I'm afraid so." Gold returns Spinny.

Joey was pumped. "That was awesome. How you use the String Shot to your advantage, and how you looked like you were about to lose but then pulled a trick up your sleeve at the last minute was so cool. A light bulb turns on in Joey's head. "Is that what you mean by strategy?"

"Pretty much." Gold answers.

"I see." Joey thinks. "Maybe if I come with a strategy, then Rattata will be able to win some battles."

Gold smiles. "Glad to see that you're rethinking things. Now if you don't mind, I got to get to Violet City."

Gold was about to walk off when Joey says, "But, then, I won't be able to see you again." Gold turns around and looks a Joey. "You're the coolest person I've met. And now you're just going to leave."

Wade sees the Gold's PokéGear and gets an idea. "I know!" He pulls out a piece of and writes something down. He, then, gives it to Gold. "This is my phone number to my PokéGear. We can at least keep contact with each other."

Gold smiles. "That's a great idea." He turns to Joey. "You did say you wanted to make a trade between friends. Why don't we trade phone numbers instead?"

"Okay!" Once the trade was finished, Gold thanks his newfound friends and heads off. Before he walked about foot, Joey shouts at him. "Hey, Gold! Just because we're friends now doesn't mean the fight is over. The next time we meet, my Rattata and I are going to beat you."

Gold laughs. "I'll be waiting for that day." Gold waves goodbye as he heads down the path.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: The Dark Caverns**

Gold was walking down Route 31 to Violet City. He sees a pond nearby and decides to take a break. The path seems to be longer than he thought. He sits down on a rock and look at his PokéGear. It has been three days since he meet his new friends, even though they're younger than him. He looks through his PokéGear and sees the number to home. An exclamation point appeared.

"Oh shoot! I forgot to call Mom!"

You think after five days of no response the lady would have try to call her son. Anyway, as Gold makes an attempt to call his mother something was lurking in the water. It springs up and snatches Gold's PokéGear.

"Poli! Poli!"

"What the heck?"

A Poliwag was bouncing everywhere with Gold's gadget wrapped around its tail.

"Hello? Who's this?"

"Oh shoot! Mom!"

"Gold? Is that you?"

"Poli! Poli?"

"Am I hearing a Pokémon?"

"Poli!"

"H-hey! Give that back!"

"Oh, so that's why you haven't been calling!"

Gold starts to chase the Poliwag around the pond while his mother was still on the line.

* * *

Somewhere deep in the forest, Silver was tossing a pokéball in the air and catching it. There have been a few battles here and there but nothing exciting. He stops to see Crystal examining a cave.

"What are you doing?" Silver asks. He looks down at her clothes. "And what are you wearing?"

"Explorer clothes!" She answers cheerfully.

She was wearing blue shirt with a brown vest over it, blue camouflage pants, brown boots, white gloves, and an explorer's hat. She still had her pokéball colored mail bag but it was strapped to her back like a rucksack. Crystal had a flashlight in her hand as she examines the cave again.

"This is the Dark Cave. It got its name for obvious reasons." Crystal explains. "I was hoping to take a look inside. I might get some training out of it."

Silver puts the pokéball away. "Sounds like fun. Can I tag-a-long?"

"Sure. The more the merrier."

The two start spelunking. They barely walked two feet before it became pitch black. The light from the opening was not enough to reveal the path in the cave despite its size. Silver put his hands on Crystal's shoulders in order to keep up with her.

"Reach into my mail bag. There should be a spare flashlight." She whispers.

Silver pulls out another flashlight from Crystal's bag. After he turns it on, he waves the flashlight around to look at the cave walls as they go deeper and deeper in the cave.

* * *

A man was in the cave with a Machop and a Geodude. He wore a brown long-sleeved shirt, brown pants, a green vest, and an explorer's hat. He and his Pokémon marched through the cave with lanterns in their hands and hiking equipment..

"All right, you two, prepare yourselves." He says with a rough voice. "There's a swarm nearby so we need to keep our eyes peel. I must capture that Pokémon. Hold it." He goes to a soft whisper. He sees to beams of lights from the edge. "Someone's nearby as well. No matter, we'll take care of them."

"!"

He lunges at his opponents. A thwump is heard in the cave. The man is unconscious.

* * *

The man wakes up to see two kids leaning over him. His Machop and Geodude were nearby with the equipment.

"He seems to be coming around." Silver says.

"Oy! What happened?" The man says running his head.

"You jumped off a ledge, hit your head on a rock and passed out." Crystal explains.

The man thinks for a moment then speaks. "Heh, guess I should have put the lantern a little closer to the ledge so I can see a bit of the ground."

Crystal examines the man. "You're a hiker, are you not?"

The man gets up on his feet in a flash. "You got that right, missy. I'm Hiker Anthony, expert explorer and toughest man on the mountain."

"At least human-wise." Silver adds.

Anthony looks down at Crystal. "Ah-ha! You seem to have the spirit of an explorer. The need to explore the unknown no matter what the danger is, even at such a young age. Ah, to be young again."

"Actually," Crystal decides to correct him, "These clothes are just for fun. I'm actually a Pokémon trainer. Silver and I are wondering the cave out of curiosity."

"And that's what starts a hiker's life. To feed his curiosity, the hiker will to climb the highest mountain or to explore the darkest caves."

"Speaking of which, why are you here?" Silver asks.

"I'm here because of the swarm." Anthony answers.

Crystal's and Silver's eyes widen with curiosity. "A swarm?" Crystal asks.

"Yes! A swarm of Dunsparces come through the Dark Cave every so often." Anthony explains. "Even as we speak, they're wondering around this cave. I was hoping to be the first one to catch any of them."

"So you try to scare us thinking that we're after these Dunsparces only to fail miserably." Silver says cheerfully. "And to add insult to injury, your Pokémon panic since they didn't know what to do."

Anthony stops to let this sink in for a moment. He looks over at his Pokémon to see them turning red with embarrassment. Anthony gives a face of disappointment then returns his Pokémon.

"Well, in any case, I must continue my search." He says as he marches off.

Silver and Crystal look at each other then smile. "Can we come with you? We've never seen a Dunsparce before."

Anthony stops for a moment to think then shrugs. "What they hey. It's an experience that rarely pops up; and since I have confirmed that you two aren't rival hikers or poachers I guess it would be all right."

"Great!" Silver says excited. The three travel deeper into the cave.

* * *

A few hours went by then Anthony stops the kids for a moment. He points over some rocks. The two take a look to some yellowish creatures with wings and strips on their backs. Crystal pulls out her Pokédex to identify them.

Dunsparce: The Land Snake Pokémon. It hides deep inside caves where no light ever reaches it and remains virtually motionless there.

"So that's a Dunsparce." Silver says. "We'll now we know why you can only find them in this cave."

Crystal looks at them with a cute giggle. "They actually look kind of cute."

Silver rolls his eyes. Anthony nods in delight. "They are very interesting creatures, are they not?"

"Can they fly with those wings on their backs?" Crystal asks with curiosity.

"A little. They usually dig underground instead." Anthony answers.

A rumble is heard as the ground begins to shake. A strange drill machine comes out of the ground and settles in the cave. Seven people in black uniforms come out of the machine. They surround the Dunsparce, who scatter everyone, in order to capture them. Anthony became angry.

"Poachers!" Anthony roars. He leaps out from behind the rocks. With both pokéballs in his hands, Anthony prepares for the worst. "Just what do you think you're doing to the Dunsparce?"

The poachers look up at their opponent. One steps up and answers, "We are capturing these Dunsparces for our reasons only."

"Is that so?" Anthony growls. "Without a clear answer, I can only assume that these unknown purposes will not result to a good outcome. Therefore, I will stop you from doing any further damage."

He calls out his Pokémon to battle. Machop flexes its muscles while Geodude pounds its fists together. The poachers pulled out their pokéballs, but before they called out their Pokémon they notice something with the Dunsparce. The Dunsparces were sticking their tails in the ground and boring into the surface.

"The Dunsparces are escaping!" One poacher yells. A female in the group throws a pokéball towards the swarm.

"Ekans! Don't let them escape!" She commands. A snake-shaped Pokémon comes out and grabs a hold on a Dunsparce. The other poachers call out their Pokémon to do the same. Silver turns to Crystal.

"Come on, Crystal! Anthony can't battle those guys alone!"

Crystal nods in agreement and the two come out of their hiding place. The two call out their Pokémon.

"Gator! Sentry! Come on out!"

"Chikorita! Oddish! You guys, too!"

All four Pokémon are released into the battlefield. Anthony looks at the trainer's Pokémon, then at the poacher's. Adding them all up, there were eight Rattatas, six Zubats, two Venonats, and one Ekans.

"Crystal! Your Pokémon should take care of the Rattatas! Machop will aid you while Geodude takes care of the Zubats! Silver have your Sentret take care of the Venonats while Totodile fights the Ekans! Got it?!"

"Yep!"

"Right!"

Gator slashes at the Ekans to release the Dunsparce in its mouth. The poachers had their Pokémon battle the three trainers. However, since not all the poachers had Rattatas or Zubats, it became confusing to which Pokémon to call commands to. Crystal and Anthony had an easy time taking down the group. One poacher, who had both Venonats, commanded his group to use Supersonic on Sentry. This failed since Silver had Sentry come between the two and jump on the last second, causing the two Venonats to hit each other.

Silver's only problem was the Ekans. It was the strongest out of all the poacher's Pokémon. Whenever Gator attempted to Scratch, Ekans uses Wrap to stop him. When Gator used Leer so did Ekans. Ekans also knew Bite and Poison Sting. Silver's biggest concern was Gator getting poison during the battle. His fears went away when the woman turn her attention towards the other poachers.

"Hey! I was put in charge here! I will not lose my chances of becoming an executive!" She yells. Realizing that the others were losing she commanded her Ekans to attack Chikorita and Oddish. Because of her weakness to poison, Chikorita fell to its knees. Oddish was okay and tries to help Chikorita to her feet.

"What are you doing?! You're battles with me!" Silver yells.

"I'm not letting you guys defeat us. If that means taking matters into my own hands then so be it!" The woman yells.

Ekans wraps itself around Machop. Crystal runs up to Chikorita. She sees a Dunsparce poking its head out from the ground checking to see if it's safe.

"Psst! Excuse me, little Dunsparce." She whispers. The Dunsparce turns its attention to Crystal. "Can you help us? It will get rid of these horrible people in an instance."

The Dunsparce tilts its head. It was unsure to leave its trust with a young girl. On the other hand, it did not like having these poachers attack its friends and capturing for some horrible purpose. The Dunsparce nods to Crystal.

Machop tosses Ekans towards the confused Venonats. The Venonats snap out of their confusion just in time to see Ekans heading their way. The two jumped frantically away as Ekans smashes on the ground. The Venonats turn their attention to Machop.

"Confusion!" Their trainer shouts out.

Immediately, the Venonats combined their power and used the attack on Machop. The blast of power caused a lot of damage on Machop.

"Machop! Are you okay?" Anthony says worried. "Try Karate Chop."

Machop got up and notice a Venonat grabbing his head. Reacting, Machop attempts to strike Venonat not realizing that it was an illusion caused by the confusion. Machop ends up hitting himself then the actual Venonats. Meanwhile, Ekans gets up in a daze. Before it got its head straight, Gator tackles it with his Rage attack. The woman turns to Silver.

"Hey! That was a cheap shot!" She yells.

"Oh, like your attack on Chikorita was fair?!" Silver yells back.

"Why you…Ekans use Poison Sti-"

Before she gave out her command, Ekans falls into what appears to be a pit trap. The woman was stunned by the sudden event. The other poachers became stunned as their Pokémon started to fall into pit traps as well, ultimately ending the battle.

"How did this happen?" One of the poachers asks in confusion.

To answer his question, a Dunsparce pops out of the ground and hovers to Crystal.

Crystal giggles. "Good work, Dunsparce."

The woman growls. "We were unable to expand our operations. We must retreat."

The poachers returned their Pokémon and run back to the vehicle. Confused by the woman's words, Silver grabs a lantern and runs after the group. Every one of them was able to get into the vehicle and burrow away, but not before Silver got a good look at them and saw a big red "R" on their shirts. The cave was now quiet since the threat was gone. But the symbol on the group's uniforms still puzzled Silver.

* * *

The three soon found an exit out of the cave. The exit led them to a mountain side where the ledges were safe enough to climb down. They were tired from the ordeal that took place. Even though the sun was setting, their eyes were trying to adjust to the light.

"Oy, what a day." Anthony says exhausted.

"Sorry you weren't able to catch any Dunsparce." Silver says.

"Ah, don't worry about it. As long as the little critters are safe, I'm happy." He cheerfully says. "Besides, the Dunsparce will surface again. I just have to wait awhile."

Silver smiles, but then it fades as he ponders over the people they just battle. Crystal was happy to see the sunset from a mountain ledge. She, as well as the other two, heard a small cry. They turn around to the cave to see a Dunsparce fluttering out. It made its way to Crystal and rubs its head against her leg.

"Aw, you don't have to thank me." She says petting it. "I just wanted to make sure you and your friends were okay."

She stops to think for a moment. She giggles as she pulls out a pink ribbon and ties it around Dunsparce like a bowtie.

"What are you doing?" Silver asks.

Crystal picks up the Dunsparce. "I told you I was going to save the pink bow for another Pokémon. This Dunsparce will a make a cute addition to my party," She turns to Anthony, "if that's all right with you."

"Go ahead. You saved our butts back their so you deserved to keep it." Anthony says.

Crystal giggles as she cuddles the Dunsparce. They heard someone shouting "Hey!" from the side of the cliff. They look down to see who it was. It was Violet.

"What are you two doing here?" She asks.

Silver was confused. "How did you catch up with us?"

Violet became confused herself. "What do you mean? This is Route 46. It is connected to Route 29."

Silver and Crystal stood still for a moment to let this information sink in. They pulled out their PokéGear and looked at the Map apt. and sure enough the map revealed they were indeed at Route 46. The two scream in realization and then yell, "Gold is ahead of us!"

"Well," Anthony begins to speak, "You could go back into the Dark Cave. If it got you here in one day, it will certainly get you back to the other entrance."

The two calmed down immediately as Silver says, "Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. But first we need to rest up a bit."

Violet stomps the ground with her foot. "Hey, you guys are ahead of me. At least let me catch up."

"Sorry, sis. No short cuts for you." Silver says playfully.

"SILVER!"

* * *

Gold was walking down the path after a long day. He looks down at the pokéball that was holding Poliwag. After a moment of silence he finally says to himself, "I don't have to nickname all my Pokémon, right?" He stops to see a sign that says "Violet City: The City of Nostalgic Scents." Gold was excited.

"I made it! Finally!"

He calls out his Cyndaquil, Sally. Sally stretches and then looks up at Gold.

"Take a look Sally." He said pointing at the small city. "We're in Violet City. Now to find a Pokémon Center and prepare for my first Gym Battle."

Sally jumps in excitement. The two make a run for the city where next battle waits.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Getting Schooled**

Gold was sleeping in a bed at the Pokémon Center. Sally gets out of her pokéball and stretches. She looks up at her trainer who was sleeping in, again. Aggravated, Sally walks to his belt and pulls out a pokéball. She releases Poliwag, speaks to it, and points at Gold. Poliwag tilts its head (or body), then squirts Gold with a Water Gun.

"Ack! Hey! Knock it off!"

Gold rolls around in bed in confusion. Poliwag finally stops when his owner falls out of bed. Gold moans then returns Poliwag. Gold got into some dry clothes though he was still a little sleepy. He looks at a map placed nearby his bed. He, then, gets out of his sleepy state.

"Oh man, I forgot! We're in Violet City! My first badge is here!"

Sally bounces up and down glad that Gold figured it out. Gold returns Sally and runs out of the Pokémon Center. He looks around hoping to find the gym. He walks around for a while until he saw an unusual man. He twirled after every few steps. The man soon notices Gold staring at him and goes up to him (twirling a bit of course).

"Hello! Hello! Earl, I am. Name, you go by?"

Although it was easy to understand him, Gold was quite confused with his speech. "Um, my name is Gold. I'm a Pokémon trainer from New Bark Town."

"Ah, trainer you are!" He says. "Happy to meet. Good trainer are you, but still beginner."

"Thanks for pointing that out." Gold says irritated.

"Teach you to become better, I can. You wish to know more about Pokémon?" Earl asks.

Gold thinks for a moment. He has learned about battling just by observing other trainers. Then again, it wouldn't hurt to learn a bit about battling from someone else.

"Okay. Why not?" Gold responds.

"Very well. Teach you, I will. Follow me."

Earl leads Gold down the street. It was kind of annoying to stop every once and a while so that Earl can do a spin. Gold felt the day was going to end before they got to their destination. Fortunately, there was a school nearby.

"A school?"

Gold begin to realize that Earl was a teacher, not just a friendly stranger.

"Oh, boy."

"Come now, students are waiting."

Students? When they enter the school, there was a classroom filled with students. The students appear to be seven or eight years old. The students were talking loudly with each other. There were four rows of desks with a chalkboard and a large desk in front of the classroom. Books and papers were scattered on the student's desks. Earl brought Gold to the front of the class.

"Settle down class. Special guest, we have."

The students settle down, all eyes looking forward at Gold and Earl.

"Class, this real Trainer here. Please explain yourself."

Gold was able to understand Earl's odd speaking style by now and took a deep breath. "I'm Gold. I'm from New Bark Town. I've come to Violet City to claim my first badge."

"If you haven't gotten your first badge then how can you call yourself a trainer?" One boy says. He was sitting in the front of the class. He had on a blue long sleeve shirt, white shorts, and white and blue sneakers. His black hair was curvy in front of his head and spiky on the back.

"Gold beginner." Earl says. "All trainers must begin. Gold attends with us today. Maybe trainer will learn something new with us. Maybe students learn something from Gold."

"Not me. I'm the smartest in this class." The boy says proudly.

"Now, now Alan. No rude comment." Earl says waving his finger.

_Great. I'm already seeing how this day goes._ Gold thought to himself. He sits down on an empty seat that Earl put out for him. Earl immediately started the lesson.

"Today we talk about problems you may face in battle. Strength and defense very important in battle. Must be careful. Attacks, there are, that can lower strength and defense. Name a few?"

A girl raised her hand. "Tail whip is one. The Pokémon can wag its tail to make themselves look cute. That lower the opponents guard."

One boy in the back cuts in. "Cuteness won't get you anywhere. I take down anything that looks cute. Leer and Glare are better attacks because they are much more effective when it comes to lowering defense."

The boy, which Earl called Alan, rolled his eyes. "Glare doesn't lower defense. It paralyzes the Pokémon. Paralyzes prevents Pokémon from attack, at least 50% of the time, and lowers Speed."

"Ah, yes, very good Alan." Earl wrote 'Paralyze' on the board. "Paralyze is a status problem that can reduce Speed. Is there another status problem that can reduce a Pokémon's stats?"

"Burn! It reduces the Pokémon's strength making it hard to land a good hit." Alan says proudly.

Gold was silent for a while. He was thinking of how these attacks and status problems would be used in a real battle. Because of the burning fire, it would feel painful to use a physical attack. "There's always Special Attack?"

Everyone looked at Gold.

"If a Pokémon has a Special Attack, then it wouldn't matter if the Pokémon's attack was reduced. All that would matter was the damage it takes from the burn."

Alan humped. "Well, what about Sleep. A sleeping Pokémon can't attack."

"Not true." Gold says. "There are a couple of attacks that can come into play when the Pokémon is sleeping. If it doesn't know any of the attacks, it can still use a berry as its ace card."

"Well, there are no attacks to help a Pokémon when it's Frozen." Alan says angrily.

"True. Well, except fire attacks. You can't freeze people without ice; and fire melts ice. With that said, Fire Pokémon can't be frozen."

"What about confusion?"

"Switch the Pokémon with another that has an advantage with the opponent."

"Flinch?"

"The only way to prevent that is to have you Pokémon faster than its opponents."

Gold may have not done well at school, but he was able to point out a few techniques to use in battle. The students were quite amazed. They were still learning the about Pokémon battling and Gold could throw out some information as if it were basic to him. One student raises her hand.

"Could you say all that, again? I wasn't able to get all of it on my notebook."

* * *

Lunch time. The classroom was empty with just Earl and Gold in the room. Earl was preparing for the next lesson while Gold was scratching the back of his head embarrassed.

"Sorry about what happened a few hours ago." Gold apologizes.

"No problem." Earl says happily. "Everyone learns, whether young or old."

Gold nods understanding his words. Two boys and a girl came into the classroom looking for Gold. "Hey, Gold!" One boy yells. "Since you're a Pokémon trainer, you have to at least one or two Pokémon. Can we see them?"

Gold thought for a while then shrugs. "Sure, why not?"

The kids cheer and drag Gold out. Once they got outside the school, Gold pulls out three pokéballs. Sally, Spinny, and Poliwag came out. Seeing a bunch of kids, Poliwag thought they had to do a performance or something. It jumped, spun around, and blew bubbles. Spinny shoots String Shot at the bubbles to show off its aim. Didn't want to be left out, Sally shoots fireballs at the sticky string to show off its accuracy. The kids laugh as they enjoy the performance. Gold, however, was amazed.

"Sally, you learned Ember?"

Sally responds to Gold's question with a simple nod.

"That's great! We are definitely going to win our first badge!"

"Hold on a second!" Gold turns around to see Alan behind him crossing his arms. "You can't battle the gym leader. He has flying Pokémon."

"Flying Pokémon?" Gold responds to his statement.

"That's right! There are some Pokemon I know that can win against flying-type Pokémon." He turns around still crossing his arms and gives off an evil smirk. "But I won't tell how to win against him."

"That's mean, Alan." One girl says angrily.

One boy steps up front. "Yeah! You're just angry because someone was better than you."

"It's okay, really. I learned everything I need to know from Alan." Gold says confidently.

The kids turn to Gold with confused looks on their faces. "But I didn't tell you anything!" Alan yells.

"On the contrary, you told me enough." Gold says and begins to explain. "You said the gym leader had flying-type Pokémon. It's pretty obvious that Spinny here won't be able to much damage since he's a bug-type. Sally and Poliwag, however, will be able to do plenty of damage and are not weak against flying attacks. You pretty much help me choose the right Pokémon to battle with."

"But those two don't have any attacks that are super effective!" Alan points out.

"It doesn't matter. As long as they're not weak against flying-type attacks we'll be okay." Gold says back to Alan.

Alan growls. "You don't know anything about battling, do you?"

"You want to try to prove you're point." Gold says challenging the student.

"You're on!"

A bell rings. The students turn to see Earl with a small hammer standing next to a medium-size bell. There was a table in front of him with six pokéballs on it. He clears his throat.

"An idea I have come up with. Gold, Alan, use Pokémon trained at the school." Earl says.

"All right." Alan says and he runs up to the table. He takes three pokéballs. "You can have the rest."

Gold gives off an angry look and takes the other three pokéballs. His Pokémon returned to their pokéballs. He notices that playground had a battlefield already prepared. Alan was ready left side of the field. Gold gets into his position. _I might be doing Violet a favor. She's twice as smart and this kid is already upset with me around._

"Begin!" Earl says and he rings the bell.

Gold and Alan both threw out one Pokémon. A Spearow came out of Gold's pokéball and a Pidgey came out of Alan's.

"I'm at an advantage here. I've battled with the school's Pokémon so I know all of their attacks." Alan says proudly.

Gold growls. _How am I supposed to know the Pokémon's when I just got them?_

"Use the Pokédex." Earl says. Gold pulls out the Pokédex and points it at the Spearow. He looks on the screen to see what the Spearow knows. Peck, Fly, Leer, and Return.

"Get your head in gear! I'm not going to wait for you to memorize those attacks." Alan yells. He points at Spearow and yells, " Pidgey, use Gust!"

The Pidgey flaps its wings at a fast pace creating a whirl of winds that blew Spearow backwards. Spearow tumbles on the ground. Gold had to act fast.

"Spearow, Peck."

Spearow gets up and charges at Pidgey with its sharp beak ready.

"Sand-attack!"

Pidgey flaps its wings towards the ground blowing sand into the air. The sand blew into Spearow's eyes blinding him. The sudden sting stopped Spearow from charging.

"Now use Swift!" Alan commands.

Pidgey swings it wings as stars appear hitting Spearow. Gold didn't know what to do. _The attack went everywhere. Spearow couldn't dodge even if I command it._

"Now fly to the sky!"

Pidgey flew up to the sky. It flies in a circle ready for to attack.

"Now use Fly!"

The Pidgey charges downward at Spearow who was still feeling effects from the Sand-attack. _Wait a minute. That's it! _Pidgey was about to land a hit when Gold yells something.

"Spearow, use Fly!"

Spearow immediately takes to the sky, dodging Pidgey's attack. Alan and Pidgey are stunned while Spearow gains speed in the air and flies towards Pidgey. The sand in its his eyes still blinded him so he ended up missing Pidgey. Alan sighs with relief. Gold snaps his fingers. _So close. The Sand-attack is causing Spearow trouble. His lost his sight…but not his hearing._

"Pidgey, use Fly!"

Pidgey flaps its wings and flies towards Spearow.

"Dodge it Spearow."

Spearow hears Gold's command and flies upwards.

"Now, Fly!"

Spearow takes aim and charges at Pidgey.

"Dodge it!"

Pidgey moves to the left. Just as Spearow was about to past Pidgey, Gold yells another command.

"Take a sharp right turn and use Return!"

Spearow turns sharply and tackles Pidgey with a powerful force. Pidgey falls to the ground. Alan was shocked and so were the students. Earl rings the bell.

"Pidgey is unable to battle. The winner is Spearow!"

"What…I thought…how did Pidgey get knocked out by Return?! Return works better when the Pokémon is really compatible with you." Alan exclaims.

"A lot of trust Spearow may have." Earl points out. "Anyway, next match will start."

Alan pulls out another pokéball and releases his next Pokémon. A ball of fluff with big blue eyes and pointy ears appears before Gold.

"All right Jigglypuff!" Alan cheers.

Gold felt uneasy. Alan seems a little too excited to have such a cute Pokémon. Earl rings the bell.

"Begin."

Alan immediately gives out his command. "Thunder!"

Jigglypuff blows up like a balloon and lets out electricity from its stubby arms. Spearow was still in the air when the electric strikes it. Spearow falls to the ground after getting hit from a powerful hit. It lifts itself up despite it's injuries.

"Spearow, return to the pokéball!"

Gold returns Spearow still bewildered. _That's probably why he was excited about Jigglypuff._

Alan nods. "It was not just the attack that took down Spearow. Pokémon who station themselves in the sky are much more vulnerable to attacks like Thunder."

Gold sighs as he pulls out his next pokéball. He releases his Pokémon which was a Zubat. Gold looks at the Pokédex to see Zubat's attacks. Leech Life, Supersonic, Bite, and Confuse Ray.

Alan smirks. "Well, this won't take long."

Earl rings the bell. "Begin."

"Jigglypuff, use Thu-"

"Supersonic!" Gold interrupts Alan.

Zubat makes a high-pitch screech creating sound waves. The sound waves hit Jigglypuff, confusing it. Alan was a little worried at first until Jigglypuff pulls out a berry and eats it. Her confusion went away.

"Good work, Jigglypuff!" Alan says.

"Confuse ray."

Zubat blasts a ray at Jigglypuff confusing it, again.

"What the…why did you use two attacks with the same effects."

"I saw some trainers do it." Gold explains. "I think the point is to annoy the trainer."

Alan was getting irritated by Gold's moves, which probably meant the strategy worked.

"Headbutt!"

Despite its confusion, Jigglypuff runs towards Zubat with its head lowered.

"Dodge it!"

Zubat flies upwards just above Jigglypuffs reach.

"Now, Bite!"

Zubat flies towards Jigglypuff and grabs a hold of its ear. Jigglypuff swings her head trying to swing Zubat off.

"Use Pound to knock it off."

Jigglypuff swings its arm and smacks Zubat off its ear.

"Now Sing! Sing your heart out!"

Jigglypuff uses its signature move putting Zubat (and half the students) to sleep. Gold was plugging his ears. _Great. Zubat is put to sleep. Its now vulnerable to any attack._

"Good, now let's finish the battle with Thunder!"

Jigglypuff, once again, blasts a bolt of electricity into the sky and waking up the students. The bolt comes crashing down on… Jigglypuff?!

"What! What happened?!"

"Jigglypuff is still confused." Gold points out.

Jigglypuff falls down burnt to a crisp. Earl rings the bell.

"Jigglypuff is unable to battle. Zubat is the winner."

Zubat gets up wiping the sleep from its eyes. Alan releases his final Pokémon: a Machop.

"All right! We're going to win this time."

Gold prepared himself. _Alan knows Pokémon's attacks from this school. He knows an attack from this Machop that will give him the upper hand._

Earl rings the bell. "Begin!"

Alan gives out his first command. "Ice punch."

Machop thrusts an uppercut that had an icy chill. Zubat took great damage from it.

"Zubat, Supersonic!"

"Not this time!" Alan yells out. "Dig!"

Machop digs into the ground and avoids the sound waves. Zubat looks around confused as to where its opponent went. Machop bursts out of the ground right behind Zubat.

"Ice punch."

Machop punches Zubat to the ground. Feeling the chill, Zubat was down for the count. Earl rings the bell.

"Zubat is unable to battle. Machop is the winner!"

Gold returns Zubat and releases his final Pokémon: a Geodude. Its attacks were Earthquake, Selfdestruct, Defense Curl and Mud-Slap.

"Now I know we have an advantage." Alan says confidently. "Now, use Ice Punch!"

Machop runs towards Geodude at such incredible speed with its frosty fist ready.

"Geodude, Defense Curl."

Geodude hugs itself, curling up like a ball. Machop punches Geodude's rock hard surface. Although the move was super effective, Geodude was able to prevent the attack from doing too much damage.

"Machop, Karate Chop!"

"Mud-Slap!"

Machop swings hands it downward on Geodude. Before it made contact, Geodude spins smacking wet sand onto Machop. Machop eyes begin to water as it moves itself away from its opponent. _Looks like Machop will have trouble seeing now._

"Machop, Dig!"

Machop digs into the ground. _Great. Machop will be able to sense Geodude's movements from underground enabling him to get a good shot. Wait a minute. _Gold looks at Geodude who is waiting patiently. _Thunder was worked very well on those in the sky. Natural earthquakes shake the earth. Maybe…_

"Geodude, use Earthquake."

Geodude slams its fist on the ground a couple times and then lets out a roar. The ground begins to shake violently as part of the field cracks ups. Machop comes bursting out of the cracks in pain.

"What…How…" Alan was speechless.

Gold looked confused. "Why are you amazed? You said you knew all of the school Pokémon's attacks; or you are you not as smart as you claim to be."

Gold's words angered Alan. "I am, too, smart! I'll show you! Focus Energy!"

Panting, Machop gets up, takes a deep breath, and focuses on its opponent. Machop prepares itself to create a stronger attack.

"We may not be able to use Dig but we still have two other moves that will super effective. Now that it's most likely to get a critical hit I will be victorious. Machop, Karate Chop."

Machop charges at Geodude preparing to attack. _Although Geodude is strong, it can't take another hit from Machop. _With little time to spare, Gold thinks about his only other option. _It maybe the stupidest thing I ever do but…_

"Geodude, Selfdestruct!"

With Machop close enough, Geodude curls up and begins to glow. Machop stops realizing what was going on.

"Get away from him Machop!"

Too late. Geodude explodes with Machop close by. Resident can hear a loud boom and some saw smoke coming from the school. Everyone waited to see who was left standing. When the smoke finally clears, both Geodude and Machop were unconscious.

"So, who wins?" One boy asks.

"I do!" Alan claims. "You can't use Selfdestruct or Explosion when it comes down to the last Pokémon. It ensures that you opponent will win the battle."

"Interesting, except that wasn't my last Pokémon." Gold points out.

"What are you talking about?" Alan says.

Gold pulls out a pokéball and releases Spearow. Spearow was hurt, paralyzed, and panting hard, but other than that it was still standing.

"Earl never said that Spearow was unable to battle and there were no rules saying that I can't switch out the Pokémon." Gold points out.

"True, making Gold the winner." Earl says happily as he rings the bell.

Alan was upset that he lost the battle. The kids cheer for Gold while he returned Spearow for well deserved rest.

* * *

Gold grabs his bag ready to leave the school. The kids were quite upset to see him leave.

"Do you really have to go?" One girl asks.

"Of course! I am a Pokémon trainer so I must continue on my journey." Gold says happily. "Besides, I think I caused enough chaos here."

"We'll miss you."

"Yeah, you taught us a lot about Pokémon!"

Earl put his hand on Gold's shoulder. "Learning anything did Gold?"

Gold thought for a moment then responds. "As a matter of fact, I think I did learn something new from this school."

Earl nods proudly. "No matter how young or how old, people are always learning."

(A/N: Corny, I know.)

Gold nods. "Well, I better get going. See ya!"

Gold runs out of the school waving good-bye to the school. The kids shout out their good-byes hoping that Gold will come back again. As Gold runs down the street, something was bugging him. _I wonder if Alan will get over the lost. Was I too hard him? _Shaking the guilt from his head, he continues to run until he sees a large building. Gold looks curiously at the building until he sees a sign.

"Violet City Pokémon Gym. Leader: Falkner, The Elegant Master of Flying Pokémon."

Gold looked up at the building in shock. This was the Pokémon Gym. Gold stood tall and straightens his jacket.

"Might as well end this day with a gym battle." His says and matches into the gym.


	8. Pika and Peach

Pika: Hi everyone! I'm Pika, the Pikachu-colored Pichu and this is my spiky ear friend Peach.

Peach: Hello! We're here to talk about a couple things about the story.

Pika: As you all are very aware, the new HeartGold and SoulSilver games are out. They are remakes of the original Johto journey.

Peach: That reminds me. Will there be anything from the new games that will be put in the story?

Pika: Good question, and the answer is unknown. The story is based on the old Johto region. This will give us a chance to compare the old with the new. However, there may be some things from the new game that will put in the story. Who knows?

Peach: Okay, but what about the sixth trainer? We've already saw five trainers so the sixth one should be coming soon.

Pika: Patience, Peach, we're still at the start of the story.

Peach: That's because the author has been too lazy and she continues to play HeartGold.

Pika: It's more than just that. Her computer has been affected by a virus. The man from the computer store said that he had never seen a computer in such a horrific condition.

Peach: So the stories are ready and the computer is fixed. Let's stop wasting time and get on with the story line.

Pika: Right! To the gym battle!


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Flying Fury**

Gold enters inside the gym. He looks around to see a huge room with most of the ceiling opened up. On the other end of the room were three boys chatting amongst themselves. One of them has to be the gym leader. Gold begins to run over but stops when came to a huge pit. There was bridge shaped like a dollar sign leading to the other side.

"This guy sure likes to let his Pokémon fly freely." Gold says to himself.

Gold runs across the bridge towards the group. One of the boys had dark teal hair that overlapped one of his eyes. He notices Gold heading their direction. He steps away from conversation to meet up with him.

"May I help you?" The boy asks.

Gold pants for a bit, then stands up saying, "I'm Gold from New Bark Town and I'm here to challenge the gym leader!"

The boy looks up at the sky to see an orange sky. "Seems kind of late in the day."

Gold scratches the back of his head. "I got caught up with something. Someone told me you had flying-type Pokémon here." He looks around at the gym's appearance. "And by the looks of it, you sure let your Pokémon fly freely."

A Pidgey flies from the roof's opening and onto the boy's shoulder. "It helps them get plenty of exercise. The name is Falkner. I inherited this gym from my father."

"Really? Was he a good gym leader?" Gold asks.

"One the best!" One boy claims. His black hair was made into a spiky Mohawk. He had a black shirt with overalls. "My name's Abe and this is my friend Rod."

Rod had black short hair, red shirt and brown pants. "We train our Pokémon with Falkner. He is great gym leader and we also admire his father."

"His father's Pokémon were quick." Abe says proudly. "They could dodge any attack and fight back with great power."

Falkner clutched his fists angrily, suddenly. Gold tilts his head in confusion until Falkner said something. "Except, there was always that one problem. Electric Pokémon."

"Electric Pokémon? Oh, right!" Gold says.

It was pretty much common knowledge that the power of electricity can win against almost any kind of flying-type. Falkner calmed down and then begins speaking again.

"They say you can take down any Pokémon just by having an electric Pokémon. But I'm not going to let such rumors ruin the power of flying Pokémon. I'm going to become the Master of Bird Pokémon."

Gold thinks for a moment then spoke up. "Well, they are right." Falkner eyes widen by Gold's opinion. "Electric Pokémon can easily take down bird Pokémon with just a couple of hits. Although speed is good, they can't dodge the attacks forever. Plus, flying-type attacks don't do much damage anyway."

Falkner was growling angrily by Gold's words. Abe and Rod step back from Falkner realizing his rage. Gold continue to talk.

"Electric isn't the only thing that can take down flying Pokémon so easily. Rock can do just as much damage and are also not affected by flying-type attacks."

"ENOUGH! ENOUGH!" Falkner yells with rage. "My bird Pokémon are not weak as say they are! In fact, I've trained my Pokémon well enough to fight back against such opponents! I will not have them be mocked by trainers such as you!"

Gold blinks in amazement. Apparently, he gained Falkner's attention without meaning to. He then smiles. He was able to hook Falkner, now to reel him in.

"Well, if you think your bird Pokémon are powerful then prove it. Let's have a battle. If you win I'll take back everything I said."

"Fair enough! I'll make you regret you ever messed with me." Falkner yells.

* * *

The arena was prepared for the gym battle. Falkner was at one end of the arena ready to bring down Gold. Gold wasn't sure if he dug his own grave or not.

Abe calls out the rules. "This will be a two against two battle. Only the trainer can switch out his Pokémon. Whoever has the last standing Pokémon wins the battle. Let the battle begin."

Falkner calls out his first Pokémon. "Pidgey! GO!"

Pidgey soars from behind Falkner and onto the battle arena. Gold pulls out a pokéball and releases his first chose.

"Sally, let's go!"

Sally comes out of her pokéball, eager to win for her partner. Pidgey was at the same level with Sally. The two were prepared to battle and await the trainer's command.

"Sally, Ember."

Sally's back lit up with flames and she then spouts out flames at Pidgey.

"Pidgey, dodge it!"

Pidgey takes off into the air dodging the flames. It flies around in the air waiting for its next move.

"Sally, Ember!"

"Gust!"

Sally blows flames into the air hoping to hit Pidgey. Pidgey flaps its wings to blow the fireballs back. Pidgey was able to stop the flames from hitting him._ I have to admit, Falkner trains his Pokémon well. Time to try something new._

"Sally, Smokescreen."

Sally emits a black cloud of smoke all over the arena. Sally must have let out too much because neither Falkner nor Gold could see their Pokémon.

"Pidgey, use Gust to get rid of the Smokescreen!"

"Sally, try to find Pidgey and use Ember!"

Gold could here Pidgey's and Sally's voice. When Pidgey finally clears the smoke, both appear to be unharmed.

"Shoot!"

Falkner smiles. "Looks like the Smokescreen backfired. Tackle!"

Pidgey flies towards Sally. Fire suddenly rained on top of Pidgey. Burned by the flames, Pidgey falls to the ground. Falkner and Gold were surprised by what happened. _Sally missed Pidgey but her attack was still able to make a comeback. _He looks through the open roof up to the sky. _That was good air time. Now's our chance!_

"Sally, use Tackle!"

Sally charges at Pidgey. Pidgey was trying to shake off the burn effect.

"Quick, use Sand-Attack!"

Pidgey flaps its wings to blow sand at Sally. Although Sally endures the attack, she was still charging. Sally kept charging until she hit Pidgey. Pidgey tumbles on the ground. Sally was shaking her head trying to get the sand out of her eyes. Pidgey tried to get up, but the attack as well as the effect from the burns was too much for it. Pidgey fell to the ground.

"Pidgey is unable to battle! Cyndaquil wins the match." Abe calls out.

Falkner returns his fallen Pokémon. Gold cheers happily.

"Good work, Sally! Keep it up and that badge is as good as ours!" Gold cheers.

Sally waves to her owner in delight. Falkner pulls out another pokéball.

"It's not going to be that easy. Pidgeotto, Go!"

Another bird Pokémon came out. It looked almost like a Pidgey except it was bigger with different feathers on its tail and head. Curious, Gold pulled out his Pokédex.

Pidgeotto: The Bird Pokémon. The evolved form of Pidgey. It has outstanding vision. However high it flies, it is able to distinguish the movement of its prey.

"So it's an evolved form." Gold puts away his Pokédex and looks at his opponent. "Careful Sally. We're dealing with something a little stronger."

"About a lot." Falkner smiles. The moment Abe yells "Begin!" Falkner calls his first move.

"Quick Attack!"

Within seconds Pidgeotto takes off at high speeds and hits Sally. Gold was shocked at the move. _Whoa! That was fast! I know it's called Quick Attack, but wow!_

"Sally, Ember!"

Sally starts blowing flames at Pidgeotto.

"Dodge it!"

Pidgeotto flies away from the flames.

"Keep using Ember!"

Fireball after fireball, Sally continues to fire at Pidgeotto. Pidgeotto continues to dodge. Some moments it didn't have to dodge since some of the fireballs were nowhere near it. _Sally is affected by the sand. And that Pidgeotto is quick. We can't lay a hit._ Eventually, Pidgeotto did get hit by one of the fireballs.

Falkner becomes concern. "We can't keep this up forever. Find an opening then use Mud-Slap!"

Pidgeotto dodges the attacks, and then was able to find its way down. Pidgeotto swings its wings around to throw mud at Sally. Sally was hit, taking damage from the attack. _Mud-Slap is a ground attack. It is super-effective against fire Pokémon._

"Now, finish it with Gust!"

Pidgeotto flaps its wings to create a gust of wind. The attack was more powerful then Pidgey as it blew Sally away. Sally tumbles on the ground and then finally lays motionless.

"Sally is unable to battle. Pidgeotto wins the match." Abe calls.

Gold returns Sally to her pokéball. Falkner was smiling while Pidgeotto lands on his shoulder.

"So are you gonna take back what you said about bird Pokémon."

"I still have one Pokémon left!" Gold yells out. He pulls out a pokéball and looks at it. _But Poliwag has never battle before. I can't back out now. I'll just have to go for it._

Gold releases Poliwag onto the arena. It hopped around excited to battle. Pidgeotto flies off of Falkner's shoulder and onto the ground, prepare to battle.

"Begin!"

"Quick Attack!"

Pidgeotto moved quickly towards Poliwag.

"Dodge it!"

Poliwag jumped out of Pidgeotto's way in the nick of time. Gold became nervous with the realization that he never bothered to check what kind of attacks Poliwag knew. Poliwag was hopping up and down waiting for a command.

"Try Gust!"

Pidgeotto flies towards Poliwag again. Poliwag is pushed back by the winds. _Falkner is not going to wait forever! I have to figure something out! Think! Think! _Gold, then, remembered that Poliwag was blowing bubbles to impress the kids.

"Use Quick Attack, again!"

Pidgeotto flies towards Poliwag at high speeds once again.

"Use Bubble!"

Poliwag blew a small collection of bubbles. The sudden attack confused Pidgeotto as it hits the bubbles and misses Poliwag. _Yes! It worked!_ Gold's happiness went away when he sees Poliwag calling to him. He was putting at its belly with its tail. The belly had a swirl on it. Gold takes his attention away from Poliwag to see Pidgeotto getting back up.

"Good Pidgeotto. You're all right." Falkner turns to Gold. "You know, I was wondering when you were going to attack. For a second there, you seemed like you didn't know any attacks."

Gold can feel himself turning red. Falkner doesn't realize that what he said was true, and yet Gold was still embarrassed. Gold can hear Violet right now. "YOU IDIOT!" Gold shakes the thought from his head.

"Enough about that! Let's continue the fight. Use Bubble, again!"

Poliwag once again blows out a small stream of bubbles.

"Not this time! Gust!"

Pidgeotto flapped its wings to blow the bubbles away. Gold realizes that using one attack is not going to cut it. _I have to use a different attack. But what? And what about that swirl on Poliwag's belly. Poliwag is trying to tell me something about it, but every time I look at it I think a hypnotist. Wait!? Is that it?!_

"Pidgeotto, use Tackle."

Pidgeotto charges at Poliwag who stood motionless.

"Poliwag, Hypnosis!"

Poliwag's eyes glow purple signaling its attack. Pidgeotto notices this and flies away from Poliwag.

"I see. So you try to put Pidgeotto to sleep." Falkner says.

"And I see that you're a little more cautious since you didn't have Pidgeotto use Quick Attack." Gold says back.

"I can fix that. Mud-Slap!"

Pidgeotto landed on the ground and splats mud on Poliwag's face. Poliwag shakes to get the mud off his face but it continue to stick on his eyes. Poliwag was almost blind.

"Now use Quick Attack!"

"Poliwag, use Bubble!"

Poliwag blew the bubbles but it missed the charging Pidgeotto. Pidgeotto was able to land a hit with no trouble at all. _The mud is blinding Poliwag. He can't lay a hit. I need to come up with something else._

"Good work! Now turn around and do it again."

Just as his owner ordered, Pidgeotto does a u-turn and flies towards Poliwag. Gold remembered something that Poliwag also did at the school.

"Poliwag, spin and use bubble!"

Poliwag starts spinning and releasing bubbles. The bubbles spun around him like a tornado, which created a perfect shield for Poliwag and stopped his opponent. Pidgeotto could not get close to Poliwag unless it wanted to get hit by the bubbles.

"Good! Now try tackling it."

Poliwag launched himself towards Pidgeotto with the bubbles still shielding him. Pidgeotto was getting pummeled by the bubble tornado until it flew out of reach. Falkner was shocked at the strategy that Gold made up. He didn't what move to make.

"Now, use Hypnosis!"

Poliwag jumped up towards Pidgeotto with glowing eyes. However, the mud on his face prevented him from getting direct eye contact. Pidgeotto flew away before Poliwag's attack became effective.

Falkner sighs with relief. "All right, I got to get my head back in or else I'll lose this match."

Gold snaps his fingers. "Shoot, I forgot about the Mud-Slap. It's still blinding Poliwag."

"Pidgeotto try Mud-Slap, again!" Falkner commands.

Pidgeotto flew towards the ground. Gold couldn't allow Poliwag to get hit again.

"Poliwag, use that bubble tornado again."

Just like before, Poliwag spun around and created his bubble tornado. The mud that Pidgeotto was throwing hit the bubbles not Poliwag. Falkner was frustrated at first, but then came up with an idea.

"Pidgeotto, use Gust."

Pidgeotto flew up and kicked up a gust of winds. The wind blew the bubbles away. Some of the bubbles ended up hitting Poliwag in the process. Soon, the bubbles were gone and Poliwag was blown backwards by the wind. _Oh man, that attack damaged Poliwag a lot. I have to end this because I don't know how much Poliwag can take._

"This battle's ours!" Falkners exclaims. Then he made his next command. "Quick Attack!"

Gold looked down at Poliwag hoping to come up with something. Then he noticed something before Poliwag got up. The bubble tornado may have backfired, but the bubbles also cleaned the mud off of Poliwag's eyes. Pidgeotto was charging quickly at Poliwag. This was their only chance.

"Hypnosis! Quick!

Without a moment to lose, Poliwag's eyes glowed once again. Pidgeotto was seconds away from hit Poliwag when the hypnosis started to take effect. Pidgeotto missed Poliwag by inches. Falkner was surprised it had a clear shot.

"How could it have missed?" he questioned.

He looked up and realizes that Pidgeotto was more worried about keeping itself in the air. It was dozing off. Pidgeotto couldn't keep itself awake so it landed on the ground.

"This is our chance! Bubble!

Poliwag uses an attack, but instead of a barrage of bubbles a spray of water came out. Unable to react, Pidgeotto was forced backwards. Gold was amazed.

"Holy Milktank! Poliwag, you learned Water Gun?!"

Poliwag hops up and down in excitement. Pidgeotto showed no signs of getting up. Abe made the final call.

"Pidgeotto is unable to battle. The winner of this battle is Gold!"

"We won?!" Gold was astonished at first. Then he begins to cheer happily. "We won! We won our first gym battle!"

Poliwag run to Gold and waves his tail. Gold kneel down wondering what Poliwag wanted. He holds out his hand and Poliwag immediately hit the palm with his tail. Poliwag just wanted a high five for all their efforts. Gold chuckles to himself. _Silver and Crystal are going to kill me once I tell them about this._

* * *

After the gym battle, Falkner presented Gold his first gym badge.

"This is the Zephyr Badge." He says. "It is proof that you have defeated me in battle."

"Awesome! My first badge." Gold accepts the badge happily.

Falkner was upset. "It still can't believe that I lost."

"Yeah, Falkner is very good when it comes to flying-types." Rod says.

"I think so, too." Gold says happily. Falkner looks at Gold confused. Then Gold explains. "I have to admit, you were pretty tough. In fact, if the Hypnosis didn't work you would have won."

"You have a point." Falkner cheers up.

"I have a couple of friends coming for a battle, so you're going to have to keep your head high." Gold chuckles.

Falkner's face became stern. "Then I'm going to have to prepare for battle. This I won't lose."

Gold smiles. "Well, we'll see about that. Silver and Crystal can be just as tough. Speaking of which, I wonder if they made it here?"

Gold runs out of the gym to the Pokémon Center. The sun was almost gone as he runs down the road. He grips the badge tightly in his hand. When he finally gets to the Pokémon Center, he finds not just his friends but Violet as well.

"Hey, Gold!" Silver waves to his friend. "Did you just get here?"

"No, I've been for a while now." Gold says proudly. Then he held out his badge and says, "Check this out!"

Silver, Crystal, and Violet were in awe. "No way, you got your first badge already!?" Crystal complained.

"How was the battle?" Silver asks.

Gold sighs out of exhaust. "Definitely tougher than a regular battle. If it wasn't for Poliwag here, we would have lost."

"What kind of Pokémon did he have?" Violet asks. "It would be a great help if I can record them in my Pokédex."

"He had flying Pokémon." Gold answers.

"Well this will be no trouble at all." Crystal says proudly.

Gold blinks. He doesn't know that much about Pokémon, but he knows enough that grass Pokémon are weak against flying. Last time he saw her, Crystal had two grass Pokémon.

"Are you sure you're ready to face against Falkner?" Gold asks Crystal.

"Of course. I have a secret weapon." Crystal winks.

Silver buds in. "Hold up. Who said you were going first? I want to battle the gym leader!"

Crystal pouts. "Ever heard of 'ladies first'."

"Rock, paper, scissors." Silver says with his hand rolled up.

"You're on!"

For the next two hours, Silver and Crystal play 'Rock, Paper, Scissors' until a winner was made. Why did it take so long? They wouldn't stop picking rock.


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Falkner's Redemption**

All four trainers where up early for the gym battle. Crystal had won the game of rock, paper, scissors, and was marching down the road cheerfully. Silver was upset at first, but then figured that this will help him plan a strategy. Gold was more curious as to what this "secret weapon" was. Falkner was already waiting for them when they got to the gym.

"So you must be the gym leader." Crystal says excited. "Falkner, was it?"

"That's me all right. You must be the other trainers Gold was talking about." Falkner says.

"That's right. I'm Crystal and I'm here to challenge you!" Crystal exclaims pointing at Falkner.

"Very well, but don't go thinking that this will be a regular battle." Falkner says.

He invites them all in the gym. Abe and Rod were already in the gym and they notice the small group behind Falkner.

"Whoa, are you going to battle all of them?" Rod asks.

"No, just Crystal." Silver says. "We're just here to observe."

"Apparently, Crystal has a secret weapon to help her win the battle." Gold says.

"Really? We'll see about that." Falkner says.

Crystal was pumped. "Then let's get started!"

Since Gold claimed there were new challengers coming, everything was already set for the battle. Crystal was confident as she holds a pokéball, ready for a short battle. Falkner was ready as well, except he wasn't going to lose this battle. The two bird tamers and the trainers stood at the sidelines to observe.

"Sheesh. That guy looks tense." Silver says looking at Falkner. "I wonder why?"

Gold took a look at Falkner._ It seemed like he really meant it when he said he wasn't going to lose this battle._ Abe states the rules, the same ones as before. Falkner immediately lets out his first Pokémon, which was Pidgey. Violet pulled out her Pokédex to get Pidgey's information.

Pidgey: The Tiny Bird Pokémon. Common in grassy areas and forests, it is very docile and will chase off enemies by flapping up sand.

Crystal wasn't worried. In fact, compared to her previous battle, defeating this Pidgey won't be a problem.

"Dunsparce, join the battle!" Crystal cries out releasing her Pokémon.

"What the… a Dunsparce?" Gold yells in shock. He took out his Pokédex.

Dunsparce: The Land Snake Pokémon. When spotted, this Pokémon escapes backward by furiously boring into the ground with its tail.

"Huh. I guess that's why its tail is shaped like a drill." Silver says calmly.

"When did she get a Dunsparce?" Gold asks.

"Just yesterday. Long story." Silver answers.

Gold looks at the Dunsparce. _Is this really Crystal secret weapon? I guess it's better than her other two Pokémon._ Crystal had a wicked smile on her face.

"Begin!" Abe yells.

Falkner gave out the first command. "Quick Attack, now!"

Pidgey took off in a flash. Speeding fast, it targets Dunsparce.

"Jump!" Crystal yells to her Dunsparce.

Dunsparce jumps high into the air as Pidgey flew under him.

"Turn around and try again!" Falkner yells.

Pidgey does a u-turn and picks up speed again. It charges at Dunsparce hoping to hit while it was still falling. Instead, Pidgey missed again. Everyone was shocked until a closer look revealed that Dunsparce was using its tiny wings to hover, stopping his descend to the ground.

"Good work! Now use Dig!"

Dunsparce swings its body upwards and spins. Using its drill-like tail, Dunsparce spins down to the ground and creates a hole in the gym. Everyone looks around the ground.

"She can't be serious. Ground attacks like Dig won't affect a flying Pokémon." Violet says sternly.

Gold looks at Pidgey. It made sense since Pidgey was flying above ground. Crystal wasn't worried though. _They have no idea the trap I have planned._ She thought.

The group can here the ground crumbling. Dunsparce pops out of the ground in front of Pidgey. Violet was right, and not only did the attack miss but Crystal's Pokémon was also in clear view for Pidgey.

"Now, use Tackle!"

Pidgey charges at Dunsparce.

"Now's your chance! Use Glare!"

Dunsparce grew angry and its eyes begin to glow. Pidgey suddenly felt immobile. It falls to the ground hard while Dunsparce lands nice and safe.

"Pidgey has been paralyzed!" Rod yells astonished.

"Crystal had planned this all along." Violet says, amazed herself.

"So using Dig wasn't a mistake after all." Gold says.

"This looks bad for Falkner!" Abe says.

"Hold on! It gets worse." Silver says. The three boys turn to Silver. Silver looked stern while Violet smiled nervously.

Crystal let out her command. "And now, the coup de grace! Use Thunder!"

Dunsparce holds up his tail and starts to spark. Then, a burst of lightning comes out of Dunsparces tail and strikes Pidgey. Pidgey succumbs to the attack. Everyone, except Silver and Violet, were bewildered. Gold couldn't get a proper sentence out.

"How did… can it… I, uh… How does it know Thunder?"

Silver shrugs. "I don't know. It already knew the attack when Crystal caught it."

"It might have been something that Dunsparce was working on before it met Crystal." Violet says.

Abe sighs. "Pidgey is out of the battle. Dunsparce wins the match."

Falkner returns Pidgey, upset. Gold became worried. _This doesn't look good for Falkner. He could lose this battle._

"Come on out, Pidgeotto!" Falkner yells releasing his Pokémon.

Pidgeotto: The Bird Pokémon. The evolved from of Pidgey. It immobilizes its prey using well-developed claws, then carries the prey more than 60 miles to its nest.

Gold looks at Violet who had her Pokédex. She seemed quite fascinated by the Pidgeotto.

"You defeated an evolved Pokémon?" Violet asks.

Gold was a little uneasy. "Well, it wasn't that easy."

"It will be to Crystal." Silver says. "She just needs to use Thunder once on Pidgeotto and that badge is as good as hers."

Gold turns his attention to the battle, which may end shortly. "Begin!" Abe yells.

"Okay, Dunsparce, let's see if we can use Glare again!" Crystal commands.

Dunsparce's eyes begins to glow as he made an angry face.

"Not this time! Pidgeotto, Gust!"

Pidgeotto takes off into the air and starts flapping its wings. Violent winds blew around Dunsparce knocking it backwards.

"Quick Attack!"

Pidgeotto flies towards Dunsparce who was disoriented.

"Defense Curl!" Crystal yells.

Dunsparce curls up like a ball allowing it to endure Pidgeotto's attack.

"Now, Dig!"

Dunsparce burrows into the ground. Pidgeotto flies around the room waiting for Dunsparce to come out. Falkner looks the room eagerly, then hears the ground crumbling.

"Pidgeotto, stop!"

Pidgeotto stops zooming around. Dunsparce pops up right in front of its opponent.

"Now, Glare!"

"Sorry, but that trick isn't going to work again! Gust!"

Pidgeotto, able to advert its eyes away from Dunsparce's, starts to spin up a gust of winds. Dunsparce is blown back to the ground.

"Defense Curl!"

Dunsparce rolls up like a ball and bounces off the ground. Then, he gets up by the wind again and bounces off the wall behind the observers. This continues three more times before Falkner found an opening.

"Now, use Quick Attack!"

Pidgeotto charges at Dunsparce who bounced off another wall. His belly was exposed giving Falkner the impression that this was his chance to land a critical hit. As Dunsparce hurls towards Pidgeotto, he straightens himself and prepares for an attack. In that split second, Falkner notices Dunsparce's tail sparking.

"Pidgeotto! Move away from Dunsparce!"

Pidgeotto was confused by its trainer's orders, until Dunsparce stuck his out with the sparks coming out. PIdgeotto flies upwards, barely dodging the lightning bolt that Dunsparce let out. Everyone gasped, the two bird trainers sighed with relief.

"Oh no! That was so perfect!" Crystal stomps on the ground. Dunsparce lands after missing his chance. "Oh well, we'll find another chance."

Falkner was relieved but became frustrated. Pidgeotto flies around carefully with its tail feathers singe from the bolt of lightning. Crystal has ways to prevent Pidgeotto from landing a hit and Dunsparce has a trump card that can defeat them in one blow.

"Dunsparce, use Dig!"

Falkner eyes widen when Dunsparce burrows into the ground. He stares for a bit, then smiles.

"Pidgeotto, prepare yourself!"

Pidgeotto flaps its wings, stationing itself in one place. The ground begins to crumble. Dunsparce bursts out of the ground towards Pidgeotto.

"Dodge it! Then start collecting the dirt on the ground!"

Pidgeotto zooms backwards to avoid the attack. Then, it kicks up a gust of wind all over the gym floor. All the dirt that had been brought up by Dunsparce's Dig was gathering in the air around Pidgeotto. Dunsparce lands on the ground curious as to what Pidgeotto was doing.

"Now use the dirt for your attack, Mud-Slap!"

Pidgeotto starts throwing down handfuls of dirt at Dunsparce. Dunsparce dodges the attacks until one of them hits him. Dunsparce shakes his face. Gold lifts up his head seeing something familiar about the attack. _Wait a minute. This attack … it… did it work on Dunsparce? _

Crystal was angry. "Hey, is that your way of playing dirty?"

"First of all, it's an attack. Second of all, gym leaders never play dirty." Falkner says, then yells his next command. "Pidgeotto use Quick Attack!"

Pidgeotto speeds downward at Dunsparce. Dunsparce stops shaking his head to look up at Pidgeotto.

"Dunsparce, get ready!" Crystal calls to her Pokémon. "Use Thunder!"

A giant bolt of lightning comes out of Dunsparce's tail and at Pidgeotto. Pidgeotto was able to avoid the attack and hit Dunsparce. What made this event odd was that Pidgeotto didn't even need to dodge. Dunsparce was a few inches off his target.

"So it did affect him." Gold says.

Silver was able to he him. "What do you mean?"

Gold explains. "Falkner had Pidgeotto use Mud-Slap on Poliwag, giving him an advantage."

"Seriously? The attack didn't take that much damage."

"Yeah, but there's a catch. The attack can also blind the Pokémon, lowering their accuracy."

"This is bad. Thunder is powerful electric attack, so putting a lot of concentration is already hard enough." Violet says. "With Dunsparce blinded, Crystal may have lost her only ace in the hole."

"Dunsparce are you okay?" Crystal asks Dunsparce nervously.

Dunsparce moves a bit and flutters his wings to show that he still able to battle. Falkner was still smiling knowing that he has the advantage this time.

"Pidgeotto, Gust!"

Pidgeotto starts to create violent winds.

"Dunsparce, Dig once again."

Dunsparce burrows into the ground to avoid the wind. Gold frowns at this. _Glare and Thunder have become useless to her thanks to Mud-Slap. Dig and Defense Curl are her only options making this battle look grim._

Dunsparce pops out of the ground towards Pidgeotto. Pidgeotto dodges, knowing the routine by now.

"Use Quick Attack."

Pidgeotto charges at Dunsparce.

"It's all or nothing! Thunder!"

Dunsparce aims at Pidgeotto and fires. However, just like before, Dunsparce was off by a few inches. Pidgeotto tackles Dunsparce to the ground. Pidgeotto flies back up into the air.

"Now, use Gust!"

Pidgeotto create the violent winds. This time Dunsparce was to stunned to evade them. Crystal was shocked as Dunsparce tumbles backwards. His pink bowtie comes undone as he lays on the ground.

"Dunsparce, no!" Crystal cries out.

Dunsparce tries to move forward, but instead he falls onto his side. Pidgeotto lands on the ground to rest its wings.

"Dunsparce is unable to battle. Pidgeotto wins the battle." Abe calls out.

"By just two hits?" Gold says confused.

"Actually, Defense Curl can only prevent the attack from dealing a lot of damage. It doesn't prevent the attack from doing any damage." Violet explains to Gold.

"Return!" Crystal says with her pokéball out. After she returns Dunsparce she says, "You did better than I expected. Good job."

"It's kind of interesting. I can see why Falkner would teach his Pokémon such an attack." Violet says. Gold and Silver look at her with curious faces. She begins to explain. "Flying-types are weak against rock and electricity. However, rock and electricity are weak against ground. Mud-Slap is not super effective attack, but its "catch" makes it even harder for the opponent to attack."

Gold looks at Falkner. _Now I can see why he so proud of his Pokémon. But then again, he __**is**__ a gym leader._

"This is really bad. Unless there any other surprises, this battle is pretty much finished." Gold says.

"Crystal has only two options and both of them are grass Pokémon." Violet says. "Grass-types are weak against flying. She doesn't stand a chance."

"But she'll try anyway." Silver points out.

Crystal pulls another pokéball and releases her chose. "Chikorita, go!"

Chikorita comes out of her pokéball. She swings the leaf on her head a couple of times and prepares to battle.

"She's a goner." All three trainers say simultaneously.

"Begin!" Abe calls out.

"Let's finish this up! Gust!" Falkner orders.

Pidgeotto lifts off into the air to start its attack.

"Growl!"

Chikorita lets out a cute little growl. "Chikaaaaaaaaa." Pidgeotto stops itself as it and everyone else was standing in silence. Looking at Chikorita, they ponder about the point of that attempt.

"Razor Leaf!"

Chikorita swings the leaf on her head to send spins leaves at Pidgeotto. Pidgeotto was surprised as it was pummeled by the projectiles.

"You were just trying to bring my guard down, weren't you?" Falkner asks.

"It worked." Crystal says happily. "If I'm going down, Chikorita might as well do as much damage as she can."

"Fair enough. Gust!"

Pidgeotto flaps its wings to unleash its attack. The leaves blew back and so did Chikorita. Chikorita appeared to have taken a critical hit from the attack.

"Now, Quick Attack!"

"Razor Leaf!"

Pidgeotto zooms towards Chikorita. Chikorita sends out her spinning projectiles, but Pidgeotto dodge every single one of them. Pidgeotto was able to land the final hit of the battle. Chikorita falls unto the ground and passes out.

"Chikorita is unable to battle. The winner of this battle is Falkner!"

"Good work, Pidgeotto." Falkner says as he held his arm out for Pidgeotto to land.

Crystal sighs as she returns her fallen Pokémon.

"Don't worry, Crystal." Silver says trying to cheer up his friend. "Considering how well you battle, you just need a little training. Then you can beat that guy."

"Really?" Crystal says lifting her head up.

"Yeah. You had a really good strategy." Violet says. "You just need to work on that trump card of yours."

Crystal thinks for a moment, and then nods happily. "You're right. I mean, did you see how close the second Thunder? It could have been all over if it had hit!"

With just a few sentences of reassuring, Crystal was back to her old perky self. And talking nonstop.

The trainers were leaving the gym. The two bird trainers were congratulating Falkner for his win. Crystal goes up Falkner to say something.

"Enjoy your victory. We're going to have a rematch and I'm not going to lose."

"I look forward to it." Falkner says.

Crystal nods. Then she waves to her friends. "Come on! I'll race you all to the Pokémon Center!"

Silver and Violet started sprinting after Crystal.

"Wait! I can't run as fast as you guys!"

Gold didn't go after them. Instead he walked up to Falkner.

"Hey, there's something I need to say. After seeing the battle went today, and thinking about the battle we had yesterday, I realize how good you are with bird Pokémon."

"Well, I didn't become a gym leader for nothing." Falkner says proudly.

"With that said, I wanted to apologize for what I said about flying-type Pokémon. I guess if you train them well enough and use the right strategy, then flying-types are a good Pokémon to have around."

Falkner blinks for a moment then smiles. "I guess now you understand the power that bird Pokémon can have. Apology accepted."

The two shook hands. Gold waves good-bye to the Falkner and his friends as heads his way to the Pokémon Center.


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Dancing Sprouts**

Dawn of the third in Violet City, Crystal and Violet were sitting at a table eating breakfast. Silver was already gone to do a little bit of training. The girls were talking amongst themselves until they heard someone scream, or drowning. A few minutes later, Gold comes out of the bedroom looking groggy with his head soaked.

"What happened to you?" Crystal asks.

"Poliwag used Water Gun on me." Gold says still sleepy.

"Maybe this will help you get up in the morning." Violet giggles.

Gold glares at Violet and then sits down. Crystal looks at a map in her PokéGear and finds something interesting.

"Hey, look at this. There something called the Sprout Tower here in Violet City." Crystal says excitedly. "This I got to take a look at."

Crystal immediately gets up, grabs her bag, and runs out of the Pokémon Center. Gold and Violet stood in silence.

Violet sighs. "Shouldn't she, you know, prepare for her rematch?"

"I don't know. I've already got my badge so I think I'll join her." Gold says happily.

Gold runs off leaving Violet shrugging in disappointment.

-Pika-

Gold looks at his PokéGear, walking in the direction that the map was leading him. He looks up to see Crystal standing on a bridge. He catches up to her, allowing him to see the old tower that Crystal was staring at.

"Is that the Sprout Tower?" Gold asks.

"Sure is!" Someone behind the two speaks.

They turn around to see a boy possibly a year or two younger than them. He had black hair, brown shoes, blue shirt, and black pants.

"I'm heading there myself." He says happily.

"What's so special about this place?" Gold asks.

"There are people training in the tower." The boy says. "My friends told me that if you defeat the sage at the top of the tower, you get something good."

Gold blinks. "You look familiar. Have I seen you somewhere?"

"I was one of Earl's students. You came to our school!" The boy answered. "My name's Kyle!"

"Now I remember!" Gold shouts.

Crystal grabs Gold's arm and shouts, "Have you forgotten something?" Gold stares at her in confusion. "He said there's something good at the top of the tower! Let's go already!"

Crystal drags Gold into the Sprout Tower with Kyle running after them. When the three went inside the tower, Gold and Crystal stop to look around. The tower had wooden floors and walls with columns holding the ceiling up. There were some torches hanging on the wall and two strange flower statutes place near the front entrance to greet the visitors. The one thing that stood out the most was the pillar in the middle that swayed side-to-side. The three walked in quietly looking up at the pillar.

"Fascinating, isn't it?" Gold jumps up realizing that an old woman was next to him. "They say that the pillar was built at the same place the 100-foot Bellsprout once stood."

"A 100 feet?" Gold and Crystal shout in disbelief.

"Yes. The pillar even dances like the Bellsprout." She says happily.

Gold and Crystal look up at the pillar. Then they hear a young woman's voice.

"Actually, I think the pillar is moving like that because there are people upstairs battling." She says.

"Of course!" Kyle says and pulls out a pokéball. "That's why I came here!"

"A battle upstairs, huh? Sounds like fun." Gold says smiling.

The three trainers run to where they can find some stairs. An old sage stands nearby. Crystal looks up at the stairs.

"Is it really okay for us to battle in such an old place?" Crystal asks.

"Of course." The old sage answers. "The tower was made for young ones to train in."

"Good enough for me." Gold says. He immediately runs upstairs with Crystal and Kyle following him.

-Pika-

At the top was the same scene, except there was no one around. The three look around the room curious of what they might find. Crystal lets out a scream as a purple sphere with gas surrounding it flies past. It turns around to reveal two eyes and a mouth.

"Cool! A Gastly!" Kyle shouts out.

Crystal runs behind Gold. "Gastly? It acts more like a ghost!"

"A ghost, huh?" Gold says pulling out his Pokédex.

Gastly: The gas Pokémon. With its gas-like body, it can sneak into any place it desires. However, it can be blown away by wind.

"Some ghost." Gold replies in disappointment.

"I'm gonna catch it!" Kyle yells out in excitement. "Come on out, Thatcher!"

The pokéball releases a strange flower creature. It's head looks like a small fly catcher. Gold notices something familiar about Thatcher.

"It looks just like the statues at the entrance." Gold says.

"It's cute! It must be a Pokémon!" Crystal excitedly says as she pulls out her Pokédex.

Bellsprout: The flower Pokémon. If it notices anything that moves, it immediately flings its vine at the object.

Thatcher looks up at Gastly as it sways back and forth. Gastly chuckles a bit before flying off.

"Oh no, you don't! You're gonna be my second Pokémon I catch!" Kyle yells. "Thatcher use Vine Whip!"

Thatcher sways side-to-side. It turns to look at the pillar and tries to mimic its movements. It even spins once in a while. The trainers stood in confusion as Thatcher continues to dance. Gastly laughs and flies away.

"Wait! No!" Kyle shouts sadly.

"That was mean, ignoring its trainer." Crystal says upset. "We're did you catch this Pokémon."

"I didn't catch Thatcher." Kyle says.

Gold was even more confused. "But you said you were going to catch your second Pokémon."

"I was. My first Pokémon was an Onyx." Kyle explains. "I really wanted a Bellsprout and this girl named Violet, one day, had two Bellsprouts. I was willing to trade my Onyx for her Bellsprout."

Someone was laughing but it was none of the three trainers.

"It is no wonder why the Bellsprout won't listen to you." A shady character comes out of the shadows. It was another sage. "Pokémon do not listen to trainers that they aren't familiar to them or don't seem worthy. This is happens mostly to those that you get from trades."

"Why is that?" Crystal asks.

The sage explains. "You usually battle Pokémon in order to capture it, right. If you can capture it, then that means you must be a strong trainer. Sometimes capture will come from the heart. However, if to be traded to another trainer, the Pokémon becomes puzzled. Since the trainer did not catch it, the Pokémon has to find other reasons to trust the trainer. If it does not see proof of strength and/or love, it will not listen to the trainer."

There was a moment of silence before Gold speaks up.

"So, summarizing that, you're saying that Kyle needs to find a way to win Thatcher's trust and respect." Gold says.

"That is correct." The sage nods. "Are you two having the same problem?"

"Are you kidding? My Pokémon and I are the best of friends!" Crystal says proudly. "We came here because we heard that there was something good here."

The sage smiles. "If you want it, you have to prove to us that you deserve it."

The sage pulls out a pokéball and releases another Bellsprout. The Bellsprout was mimicking the movements of the pillar as well.

Crystal pulled out her own pokéball. "I guess now is the time to redeem ourselves. Come on out, Dunsparce!"

Dunsparce comes out, ready to battle. Thatcher notices the appearance of the two Pokémon and runs over to see the commotion. The sage holds out his hand.

"You may move first." He said.

"All right then! Dunsparce show them your Thunder!" Crystal commands.

Dunsparce points its tail at Bellsprout and lets out a huge bolt of lightning. The attack hit Bellsprout, but once it was over Bellsprout continue to dance as if nothing happen. Crystal, as well as the other two, was confused. The sage chuckled.

"I must admit, I was quite amazed that your Dunsparce knows such a powerful attack." The sage says. "But Electric attacks are not that strong against Grass Pokémon, especially if the Pokémon using it is not an Electric type."

_This is bad. Dunsparce has already been beaten badly by the gym leader. _Crystal thought. _Losing this battle will just lower its confidence._

"Bellsprout, Vine Whip!"

The Bellsprout flips its way to Dunsparce. It stands on its leaves (or hands) and extends its root (or foot) to hit Dunsparce.

"Dunsparce, Defense Curl!"

Dunsparce curls up in order to withstand the attack. Bellsprout flips away from Dunsparce.

"Use Growth!"

The Bellsprout station itself and started gaining strength.

"Dunsparce, use Dig!"

Dunsparce looks down at the floorboards, then back at Crystal. Crystal was silent until she understood Dunsparce pause.

"Uh, yeah. Maybe we shouldn't do that." Crystal says scratching the back of her head. Then she grew stern again. "Use Thunder!"

Dunsparce uses shoots out another bolt of lightning at Bellsprout. Bellsprout, once again, endures the attack.

_It may not affect it much, but the attack has to do some damage. _Crystal thought.

"Use Wrap!"

Bellsprout jumps on Dunsparce's back and wraps itself around its opponent. Dunsparce bounces and squirms as it tries to shake Bellsprout off. Crystal was worried at first until she remembered another attack.

"Dunsparce, use Glare!"

Dunsparce looks up directly at Bellsprout's eyes, and glares at it with glowing red eyes. The face scares Bellsprout, causing it to loosen its grip. Feeling this, Dunsparce throws Bellsprout of its back.

"Now, Thunder!"

Dunsparce points its tail at Bellsprout. The sage knew that his partner can only take so much of the attack.

"Bellsprout, try to…"

The sage cut his sentence short when he realized his Bellsprout wasn't dancing anymore. Seeing the Glare up close has left his friend shivering and covering its eyes. Bellsprout is hit with the attack one final time. Bellsprout finally falls to the floor, defeated.

"That's it then. You have won the battle." The sage says.

Crystal cheers and hugs Dunsparce. "We did it! You did a good job!"

"Don't celebrate just yet." Kyle interrupts Crystal's celebration. "There is still others waiting to battle you. You must make it to the top and defeat the sage there."

"He is correct. You still have a long way to go." The sage says.

"No big deal." Gold says. "We'll work together to get there."

"Like a dream team." Crystal says excitedly.

"Just a team please." Gold says a little disturbed.

"Thatcher certainly wants to see more." Kyle says pointing at Thatcher.

Thatcher was running towards the stairs hoping to see more ahead.

"Well, let's not keep it waiting! Come on!"

With Gold leading the way, the group continues on.

-Pika-

The three walked all over the tower, defeating a few sages here and there. Thatcher was dancing and humming, but it seemed more energetic than usual. Crystal was getting tired.

"When are we gonna get there?" She moaned.

"Just hold on a bit longer. We should be getting closer." Gold says.

They turn a corner and see three sages with their heads hung low. Gold and Kyle were ready for a battle, but Crystal noticed that something was off.

"What's wrong with you guys?" She asks walking up to them.

The three sages look her and one of them responds.

"We have been defeated by a trainer that was here earlier." He says. "This trainer, however, treated his Pokémon poorly. It was a sad sight."

"A bad Pokémon trainer?" Crystal questions.

Gold felt uneasy. "We should check this out!"

The three run past the sages and up another flight of stairs. Once they got to the top, Gold can see the swaying pillar and a sage standing in front of it.

"I suppose you are here to challenge the elder?" The sage asks.

"That's right!" Crystal shouts.

"I'm sorry to inform you that he is busy with another trainer." The sage says. "Why don't we battle to past the time?"

Gold walks forward. "I'll battle this time!"

The sage nods. "Very well, then. Go Hoothoot!"

The pokéball releases a small owl-like Pokémon. It appeared to have one foot and constantly bounces on it.

_First person to call up a Pokémon that isn't a Bellsprout. _Gold thought while getting his Pokédex.

Hoothoot: The Owl Pokémon. It always stands on one foot. It changes feet so fast, the movement can rarely be seen.

Gold looks at the Hoothoot again. "That explains it."

"It's cute!" Crystal says happily.

Gold grabs a pokéball and releases Poliwag. _Sally and Spiney had enough training from the previous sages. _He thought.

"Let us begin." The sage says. "Hoothoot, use Tackle!"

Hoothoot flaps its wings and charges at Poliwag.

"Hypnosis!"

Poliwag's eyes glowed as it looked directly at the charging Hoothoot. Hoothoot caught a glimpse at the Hypnosis and stop within a few inches of Poliwag. It lands and falls asleep.

"Now, Water Gun!"

Poliwag sprays a jet of water at Hoothoot, pushing it back. The sage was stun by this and tries to get his Pokémon to wake up. Thatcher was excited and dances in circles.

"That's cool!" Kyle shouts an excitement. "The battle was over even before it begun."

Before Gold could finish the battle, a loud noise was heard on the other side of the room. The group was startled by the sound. Thatcher ran towards the room.

"Thatcher, wait! Come back!" Kyle says running after it.

Gold, Crystal, and Poliwag follows him in the next room, leaving the sage to tend to his Pokémon. The group stops to see a boy and an old sage, possibly the elder.

"As promise I will give you this for reaching the top and defeating me." The old man says. He hands over a disc to the boy. The man grew stern. "But I must say, the way you treat your Pokémon is just awful! Pokémon are living creatures, not tools for war! You should treat them better!"

The boy ignores the man's harsh words. Gold notices the long red hair the boy had. He then remembers the description of the thief and Violet's encounter a few days back.

"Wait a minute! You're that thief that stole one of the Pokémon from Elm's Lab, Bronze!" Gold yells in accusation.

Kyle and Crystal looks at Gold in shock. Bronze turns around noticing the group. He, then, realizes what Gold says. He pulls out his pokéball.

"Are you talking about this Pokémon?" He asks.

He releases his Totodile for the group to see. It didn't take much for Gold and Crystal to notice a major difference between Pokémon. Silver's Totodile was playful and happy like his trainer, while this one was nasty and twisted like Bronze.

"That's horrible! How could you turn a cute Pokémon into a monster?" Crystal yells angrily.

Bronze became rather irritated and returns his Totodile. "What is it with everyone and kindness? What kind of power does that bring? I've defeated this old man and many trainers without such cheesy emotions. The only thing I need is strong Pokémon."

Thatcher lowers is head frighten by Bronze. "That's not true." Kyle yells. "Pokémon are our friends. Such trust makes them want to become stronger."

Bronze looks down at Kyle in disbelief. "Oh really? I suppose you won battles with trust." Kyle's anger disappears since he had nothing to back him up. "Hmph. Thought so. I think I've prove my point. I'm getting out of here before some other idiot preaches to me about kindness."

Bronze pulls out a rope with a grapple hook at the end of it. He swings and throws it at the pillar. Once the rope wrapped around the pillar he jumps out the nearest window. Crystal and Gold run to the window and watches as Bronze slides down the rope landing safely on the ground. He starts running away from the Sprout Tower.

"That would have been cool if he wasn't such a bad guy." Gold finally says.

"Shouldn't we have stopped him?" Crystal asks.

"Probably." Gold answers. "Though, he would've tried to run anyway."

"Such a horrible, yet strange person." The elder says. "I haven't seen a person with such cruelty since three years ago."

Gold was confused by the elder's words. It brought up a question, but he was unable to ask when Crystal spoke up.

"We're nothing like that! We are a much better trainer than that boy!" Crystal says proudly.

The elder nods his head. "If that is so, then let me test you and your Pokémon."

Crystal runs to the middle of the room. "All right then, how about a three-on-three?"

"That sounds good to me since I only have three Pokémon left." The elder says holding up a pokéball.

The elder releases the Pokémon from the pokéball which was a Bellsprout. Gold sighs at this. _Bellsprouts are definitely revered in this tower._

Crystal releases Chikorita once again. "All right, Chikorita. It's your time to shine."

The two Pokémon are prepared for battle. The elder allows Crystal to make the first move.

"Chikorita, use Tackle!"

Chikorita immediately charges at her opponent.

"Stop it with your Vine Whip!"

Bellsprout lifts up one of its roots and extends it. It swings its root at Chikorita, slamming her on the floor.

"Chikorita! Are you okay?"

Chikorita gets up and shakes herself.

"Try using Razor Leaf!"

Chikorita swings the leaf on her head, releasing a barrage of spinning leaves.

"Dodge it Bellsprout!"

Bellsprout swings side-to-side. Bellsprout's slender body made it easy for it to dodge the leaves as it bends back and forward. Crystal watches and thinks. _That gives me an idea._

"Chikorita, Tackle!"

Chikorita starts charging again.

"Bellsprout stop your opponent."

Bellsprout extends its root an attempt to use Vine Whip again.

"Dodge it and use Razor Leaf!"

Chikorita sidesteps Bellsprout's attacks and sends her projectiles at it. Without time to react, Bellsprout gets hit by the sharp leaves.

"Now Tackle it!"

Chikorita runs towards Bellsprout and slams her head against it. Bellsprout flies backwards and lands on the ground.

"Interesting." The elder said. "It seems your Chikorita is quite powerful."

"Well, we did get some training from the other sages." Gold says.

The elder returns his Bellsprout. "Shall we continue to Round Two?"

"Return, Chikorita! You did a good job." Crystal says returning her Pokémon. "And now for Oddish."

Crystal releases her other grass-type for the next round. The elder releases, yet, another Bellsprout.

"Let us begin." He says.

"All right, Oddish, Absorb!"

Oddish starts to absorb Bellsprout's health. However, Bellsprout was not fazed by the attack.

"I think you need to teach Oddish more moves." Gold says.

Crystal shrugs. "What? It worked before on a couple of battles."

"Not in this battle. Bellsprout, use Wrap!"

Bellsprout jumps at Oddish and wraps itself around her. Oddish franticly tries to get Bellsprout off.

"Oddish Absorb!"

Oddish unleashes her attack on Bellsprout, but it still was not fazed.

"All right, then. Use Sweet Scent."

Pollen was coming out of Oddish's leaves, creating a sweet aroma in the air. Kyle looks down at Thatcher, noticing that it was calming down. The elder's Bellsprout was feeling the effects as it loosen its grip. Oddish was finally able to shake Bellsprout off.

"Now! Use Aborsb!"

Oddish tries to absorb as much health from Bellsprout as possible, but just like her previous attempts the attack did not do much damage.

"Bellsprout, Vine Whip!"

Bellsprout smacks Oddish with its Vine Whip.

"Now, Wrap again!"

Bellsprout jumps at Oddish and wraps itself around her. Oddish squirms until she falls down. Bellsprout unwraps itself from the unconscious Pokémon.

"Oh no! Oddish!" Crystal cries out.

"You certainly need to train it more." Kyle points out.

Crystal returns her fallen friend. "I guess we're tied."

The elder nods. "Leaving one Pokémon left."

He releases his final Pokémon which was a Hoothoot. _When it's not a Bellsprout, it's a Hoothoot. _Gold thought.

Crystal pulls out a pokéball and releases her final Pokémon. "Let's try our luck again against flying Pokémon."

Dunsparce appears in the battle field, shaking and hovering into position. _First things first. I must guarantee a hit._ Crystal thought.

"Dunsparce runs towards Hoothoot!"

The elder smiles. "Go as well!"

Hoothoot flies towards Dunsprace. Gold and Kyle were stun as it appears the two Pokémon were on a collision course.

"Now Glare!"

"Hypnosis!"

Both Pokémon's eyes glows, affecting each other as they both stare directly. Hoothoot stumbles backwards shaking its head. It seems to be paralyzed with fear.

"Great! Now is our chance, Dunsparce!"

Dunsparce did not react. There was a bubble on his face that inflated and deflated. He appears to be sleeping.

"It looks like the Hypnosis took effect as well." Kyle points out.

"That's the beauty of it." Gold says pointing at Poliwag.

Crystal starts to panic. "Dunsparce, wake up!"

Dunsparce continues to snooze. Hoothoot tries to shake away its fear.

"Use Tackle!"

Hoothoot charges at Dunsparce. Since he was asleep, Hoothoot had no trouble landing a hit.

"Now again!"

Hoothoot turns around and charges at Dunsparce again. Dunsparce was sitting duck as he continues to sleep. Hoothoot strikes Dunsparce a second time, then a third.

"Wake up now! We need Thunder!"

Hoothoot flies towards Dunsparce for fourth hit. The bubble pops and Dunsparce lifts his head to see Hoothoot. Dunsparce thought it heard Thunder so he lifts its tail and lets out a jolt of lightning. The sudden strike caught Hoothoot off guard as it gets the full force of the attack. Hoothoot falls down to the ground, unable to battle.

"Now that's more like!" Crystal says happily and returns her Pokémon. "Nice aiming Dunsparce!"

"I seem that I had lost." The elder says. "I'm okay, though, since I'm happy to see one with quite a passion for Pokémon."

"Quite?" Gold responses. "This girl thinks that just about every Pokémon is cute."

"For defeating me, I give you this." The elder holds out a disc to Crystal. It looks like the same disc that Bronze received. "It's a Hidden Move called Flash. This attack as helped many trainers in the past in battles inside and out."

"I heard of that attack! A Pokémon can light up dark caves and blind Pokémon in battle!" Kyle shouts.

Crystal is interested and takes the disc. "This might come in handy."

"I hope you and your friend continue to keep your bond with Pokémon strong!" The elder says to them.

"You don't have to worry about that." Gold says giving the man a thumbs up.

Kyle looks down at the hall. "I guess we better head back down."

Gold thinks for a moment then points at the window. "Or we could just use the rope like Bronze did."

-Pika-

The group leaves the Sprout Tower, Crystal holding the disc proudly. Thatcher was the only Pokémon still out of its pokéball. Gold looks up at the sky.

"That certainly went well." Gold says.

"I'll say! You two were amazing the way you guys battle!" Kyle says in excitement.

Thatcher walks over to Kyle and lowers its head in shame.

"I guess your Bellsprout feels sorry for not defending you back at the tower." Crystal says.

Kyle smiles. "That's okay. We should start training and then make the guy eat his own words."

Gold and Crystal wave good bye to Kyle and Thatcher as the two run off home happily. Their peaceful moment was interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Just where the heck were you two!" They turn around to see Silver with Totodile in his arms and Violet standing next to him. "I just defeated the gym leader in an awesome battle and you two weren't there to see it!"

"You defeated Falkner!" Crystal points astounded.

Silver pulls out a case, opens it, and shows the Zephyr Badge. "Here's proof."

"No way! That's not fair! You and Gold are ahead of me!" Crystal whines.

"You snooze, you lose." Silver says back. Totodile laughs.

Crystal continues to yell at Silver as he continues to poke fun at her. Violet's PokéGear begins to ring.

"Hello?" Violet answers and talks. "Uh huh…really? Okay I'll go there. All right I'll tell them."

Right after she hangs up, Totodile squirts everyone happily. Silver's teasing got him riled up. Totodile laughs at his trainer and his friend. Silver chuckles back.

"If you're all done messing around, there's something that needs to be done at the PokéMart." Violet yells out in frustration.

"Okay, sis! Let's go!" Silver says happily.

As the group made their way to the PokéMart, Gold looks at his friend then at his Pokémon. The sight of Bronze's Totodile came back to his mind. Gold felt uneasy and begins to question who was Bronze.


	12. Chapter 11

Pika and Peach are playing cards in the middle of the room. A purple dark chao appears.

Lin: Okay you two, put that game on hold. The author is getting back to typing.

Pika: Oh, so you're going to need the set.

Peach: Oh well, I was beating you for fifth time anyway.

**Chapter 11: The Mysteries Within**

The group walks towards the Poké Mart after Violet receives a call from her PokéGear. Silver continues to carry his Totodile, who seems to be singing. Silver was conversing with his friends.

"Was contrast that obvious?" Silver asks.

"Please!" Crystal says back. "You couldn't look at it without getting some kind of uncomfortable feeling. That Totodile was freaky."

Gold was thinking. "Bronze is a very strange person. He certainly didn't live in our town."

"But he wanted to get a Pokémon from Professor Elm. He had to come from somewhere." Crystal says.

"We'll ask his aid." Violet says. The three look at Violet confused, so she explains. "They made some kind of discovery about the egg. Elm sent his aid to the Poké Mart to give us the details. He wanted all of us there for some reason."

They approach the mart, pondering about the meeting. They walk inside the mart to find Professor Elm's assistant holding a Pokémon egg.

"Hi there!" Crystal says cheerfully. "What'cha got there? Is that the Pokémon egg that Violet got the other day?"

"Yes, and after much research we have decide to hand over the egg to one of you trainers." The assistant explains. "Apparently, the Pokémon within the egg may be influenced by a trainer who cares for it."

"Really? Sounds confusing." Gold says.

Silver looks at the assistant then says, "You don't seem to know what you're talking about, either."

"Well, um, to be truthful, I think there is more going on then I'm being told." The assistant says. "You see, Professor Elm was talking on the phone. I don't know what the conversation was but once he got off he told me that we had to give the egg to Gold or Silver."

The trainers are stun by this as Crystal says, "Wait a minute! You said one of us; you didn't say it had to be Gold or Silver."

"Now I did."

"Why us?" Gold asks motioning to him and Silver.

The assistant shrugs. "I don't know, but I have a hunch that it had to do with that phone call."

"But, I was going to challenge the league with just two Pokémon." Silver says sadly.

"You could always use a third. Most battles come out as a three-on-three." Violet points out.

"What about you Violet? Why don't you take the egg?" Gold asks. "You went through all the trouble to get this egg to Professor Elm so you should be the one that gets it."

"Me? But I'm not a good Pokémon trainer." Violet says.

Silver puts his hand on his sister's shoulder. "But you do your best to take care of your Pokémon. This is a baby Pokémon were talking about. It needs someone who can prove the best care there is."

"Besides, it will help you with that project your doing for Professor Oak." Crystal says.

"All right! All right! You three made your point." Violet says agitated.

"So we will take the egg." Silver says to the assistant. "But, we're giving it to Violet since she is much more responsible than the three of us."

"I'm not sure this is what Professor Elm had in mind." The assistant hands over the egg. "But I guess it really doesn't matter as long as the egg is with some kind of trainer."

Violet takes the egg from the assistant. At that moment, Gold remembers something that has been bothering him for a while.

"Hey, I was wondering, about that stolen Totodile? Was it anyway sinister?" Gold asks.

"No, not really. However, it is well known that most Pokémon turn bad because the trainer is bad." The assistant answers.

"Which brings me to my second question, where did you meet Bronze?"

"It wasn't in the lab, that's for sure. Professor Elm said, one day, that he encountered a boy named Bronze and he wanted a Pokémon from the professor. When he was refused, Bronze stormed away."

"So there were no angry letters, phone calls, or e-mails from the parents?"

The assistant opens his mouth, but was at a lost with words. "Now that mention it, the boy did seem to have come out of nowhere."

"Nothing about what happened that day didn't strike you as strange?" Violet asks.

"Not really, but I guess it should have considering there was no word from his family or friends. The professor and I are usually too busy to notice such details."

Totodile was starting to squirm in Silver's arms. "Thanks for your help, anyway. We got to get going before Gator here starts to get a little too energetic."

"You guys go ahead. There's shopping that needs to be done!" Crystal says happily.

"Violet, could you stay for a while? I want to discuss about the egg." The assistant says.

"Sure, if my services are needed." Violet says.

Gold looks at Silver. "I guess it's just us."

"Fair enough."

Gold and Silver exit the mart leaving their female friends behind. Nearby, a girl dressed in a kimono, her hair up, and white make up on her face observes the trainers.

_Oh me oh my. This is quite interesting. Although the task was given to them, they hand it over to the one that will do the job right. Are they really the ones? Maybe time will tell. Maybe time will tell._

"Um, excuse me, ma'am?"

The girl looks up to see the two trainers looking at her.

"What are talking about?" Gold asks.

"Were you watching us?" Silver asks.

"Who, me? Oh, don't mind me. I'm just passing through."

She dances away, leaving the trainers puzzled.

-Pika-

The next day, Silver was getting ready to travel to the next town. His Totodile, Gator, dances around while his trainer prepares. Suddenly, the two hear a scream. A few minutes later, Gold comes out with his head wet. Gold looks down to see Gator.

"Your Totodile is out already?" He says.

Silver responses. "I realize that Gator likes to stay out of his pokéball. I don't mind. It's fun that way."

"Where's Crystal and Violet?"

"They went out to train. Since I already got my badge, I'm ready for the next gym."

"Hope you don't mind if I tag along."

"Why not? We've kept track of each other so far."

"Great! Hold on a sec."

Gold prepares for the journey, and the two walk out of the Pokémon Center. Finding their way out of town, the two talk about the many Pokémon, Gator's playfulness, and how the girls are going to kill them once they find out the two boys ditch them. Gold stops near a tree to pick some berries for his Pokémon.

"Hey, it's Gold!"

Gold lifts his head up to see a small group of kids running to him. Gator jumps out of his owner's arms wanting to play with the kids. Gold looks at the kids for a moment.

"You all are Earl's students." Gold says.

"That's right." One boy says happily.

"Wow, you sure are popular with the kids. Did I miss something?" Silver asks.

Gold tries to dodge the question. "What are you guys up to?"

"We're going to the ruins." The girl says. "It's part of our report."

"Ruins? Where?" Silver asks.

"Follow us."

The three kids lead the Gold and Silver, and Gator, away from Violet City. A couple of hours later, they appear in an area with strange buildings. There were plants growing on the buildings and rubble everywhere. Some archeologists were nearby the only new building in the area discussing something. A woman comes up to them.

"Hello and welcome to the Ruins of Alph. The ruins are open for visitors."

"Awesome! Let's check it out." Silver says excitedly.

The woman shows the group inside the ruins. The structure appears to be small, but the inside had a ladder that led to a big room. It seems the room was built underground for whatever reason. The kids were talking to the woman about the ruins. Silver and Gator were observing the area. The room had many Pokémon statues as well as writing on the wall. Gold takes a closer look at the writing and notice something weird.

"The writing…the writing have eyes?"

Gold feels something grabbing his shoulder. It was Silver.

"Come on! Let's go!"

"Go? Go where?"

"Let's see what else is here!"

-Pika-

Gold and Silver look around the ruins above ground. Gator was back in Silver's arms.

"Shouldn't we go back to the main ruins?" Gold asks.

"There wasn't much down there. It's boring." Silver says.

Gold stops in front of small ancient structure. He looks around and sees no one around.

"That place doesn't seem to be closed off. Let's check it out." Gold says.

The two enter the building. The room was empty and lifeless. The only thing there was a pedestal with a puzzle on it. The two walk up and look down at the puzzle.

"It looks like one of those puzzles where you put the pieces together to make a picture." Silver says.

Gold seem disappointed. "I thought ancient ruins had something more challenging."

Gator jumps out of Silver's arms and looks at the pieces. He picks up two and puts them together.

"Hey, they look like eyes." Silver says.

Gold thinks. "Yeah. And these pieces look like a shell of some sort."

The two try to piece together the puzzle. They turn a few pieces and made the frame. They start putting pieces in the middle until the puzzle almost complete.

"Done!" Gold says.

"Not quite." Silver says thinking. He switches the two middle pieces. "Perfect! But, what is it?"

"It looks like a Pokémon."

"What kind?"

"Maybe the Pokédex knows."

Before Gold was able to pull out his Pokédex, he and Silver fall and disappear. Gator looks down from the pedestal to see a trap door. Gold and Silver go down a slide screaming. Silver's scream turns into laughter until the two falls into the main chamber. A few visitors see the two falling from the roof.

"Are you boys okay?" One woman asks.

"That was fun." Silver says.

They hear a sound from above, and then Gator falls on top of Silver. Gold rubs his head as he gets up. A voice is heard in the ruins. Everyone looks around wondering where the voice came from.

"Unoooooooooooooooown."

Gold looks at the wall. Some of the ancient writing were becoming three dimensional. The writing suddenly pops off the wall and starts to fly around the people. Everyone became terrified of the strange creatures and ran. Gold and Silver look at the creatures. Gator was prepared to battle.

"What are these things?" Silver asks.

Unown: the Symbol Pokémon. Their shapes look like hieroglyphs on ancient tablets. It is said that the two are somehow related.

Gold looks down and sees his Pokédex on the floor.

"Hieroglyphs? More like the alphabet." Silver says as his friend grabs his Pokédex.

The Unowns unleash their attacks at Gold and Silver. Silver grabs Gator and the two run for the exit. The Unowns continue their attack.

"Why are they attacking us?" Silver asks.

"Maybe it's because we're in their home or something."

"Whoa! Gator, Water Gun!"

Gator squirts out a spray of water hitting a few Unowns. Silver stops and let's go of Gator.

"Good! Now do it, again!"

Gator continues to spray at the Unowns. One Unown, which looks like the letter "K", uses its power at Gator. Gator did not seem fazed by it.

"Whatever they're using, it doesn't seem to affect Gator." Silver says.

"I guess that gives you an advantage." Gold says.

"Right, use Bite!"

Gator jumps and clamps his jaws on the Unown. The Unown feels a lot pain and flees from Gator's jaws. Another Unown shaped like the letter "N", blasts its attack at Gator. Gator felt great amount of pain from the attack. Gold and Silver were shocked.

"That the same attack, wasn't it?" Gold asks.

"Yeah?"

"How come the other Unown's attack wasn't affect but this one was?"

"Forget this! Let's get out of here!"

Silver grabs Gator and the two starts running away, again. They reach the ladder and climb up to the base floor. Once they got out, a scientist was standing at the door.

"What is going on?" he asks.

Gold pants. "Un-unowns…everywhere. So…many…"

"Unowns? Where did they come from?" The scientist asks.

"From nowhere! It might have happened when we completed the puzzle." Silver says.

Gold is shocked by Silver's answer and looks at the scientist. The scientist didn't seem upset, but happy. Apparently, the group had made some kind of breakthrough.

"So the Unowns live in these ruins?" The scientist says.

"What is so special about the Unowns?" Gold asks.

"The Unowns are like the ancient writing on the walls. They hold some connection to the ancient civilizations." The scientist explains. "We've been trying to find that link for a while now. This may be our chance. Who knows what else might happen if we solve all the puzzles. "

The scientist runs off with his new discovery. Gold and Silver stood in silence.

"So now what?" Gold asks.

"I don't know about you but I'm going to catch some Unown." Silver says.

He runs back into the cave with Gator following after him. Gold shakes his head as he watches his friend go off. He hears his name again and sees the Earl's students.

"What happened? Did you get scared off by the strange Pokémon?" The girl asks.

Gold answers. "Surprised, yes. Scared, no."

"What's the difference?" One boy asks.

"If I was scared I would be screaming my pants off."

The other boy looks around. "I guess we didn't learn much from the ruins."

Gold tries to reassure him. "The one thing I learned from here is that mysteries are like a big puzzle. Every time you find the right piece, the picture becomes clear. Some mysteries take time to figure out."

"Like your friend?" The boy asks.

"Yep. He's definitely a big mystery."


End file.
